Blood Moon
by KittyGreene
Summary: Ten years after the battle at forks, the Volturi send out a cry for help. Meanwhile, in their new town of Avonlee, a young werewolf is found dead, spilling open a whole pandora's box of secrets. ON HIATUS
1. Chapter 1 - Avonlee

Chapter 1: Avonlee

 _The naïveté of childhood does not disappear with age._

 _As we grow, we learn, but we don't always understand._

 _What is important is that we don't always believe we have to._

 _Life doesn't always depend on you_. 

The busy lunchroom of Avonlee senior high school teems with life, students chattering loudly, teachers watching with dark scowls on their faces. Even so, it's hard for the students of this school to stop looking at us. Each of their eyes focuses on us with a certain sense of curiosity, enchanted by our very presence.

Not that I blame them.

It's been ten years since I was turned, three since my daughter Renesmée stopped aging. She sits next to me, smiling widely. Her light brown hair curls gently down her back, nearly reaching her thighs. Her light brown eyes glimmer with a certain golden light, and she holds a half-eaten red apple in her right hand. She looks into the eyes of her boyfriend, and my best friend, Jacob Black. His dark eyes are completely focused on her, mesmerized with her undeniable beauty. His copper skin seems to shine in the dim light from outside. His smile stretches from ear to ear every moment he looks at her.

My husband, Edward, leans on my shoulder, looking over at our daughter with interest. No doubt, he's reading her thoughts. His reddish brown hair and golden eyes captivate me, and I stare into them with a quickened heartbeat and a sense of light-headedness.

Across from us, Rosalie and Emmet talk quietly. Rosalie stays as far away from Jacob as she can, disgusted by the wet dog smell he wears constantly, a trait carried by werewolves. Emmett smiles as he whispers, then gently kisses her on her forehead. They seem like the perfect couple, the brawny dark haired boy and the blond, supermodel girl, both of them with glinting golden eyes.

Edward turns to look at the couple who enters, a thin, pixie like girl with short, dark hair, and a taller, medium-built boy with light brown, almost blond hair. Jasper and Alice.

Alice beams when she sees me, and takes me in her arms for a hug.

"Bella," she breathes, squeezing me closer.

"Hi, Alice," I respond, returning the hug. "You've been keeping tabs?"

She smiles, and lols at me, knowingly. "Everything's going just fine in Forks."

"Thanks," I sigh. After moving here I realized that leaving my father and my town behind would be especially hard, since the place no longer had anyone to protect it. But it seemed like the Volturi got our message and realized we had moved.

Avonlee is just a small town on the northern coast of the Pacific, just barely within the province of British Columbia. The Yukon is closer to us than Vancouver. Here it's always raining or cloudy. The tall tree cover and vast forests make for great hunting grounds, and this tiny little town, which really is more of a hamlet, is way out of public eye.

Carlisle works in the small morge and hospital, much like he did back in Forks, and Esme holds down the fort back home, which is really more of a small community. There are five little houses on the property, one larger one for Esmee and Carlisle, a slightly smaller one for Edward, Renesmée and I, two other medium sized houses for Alice and Jasper, and Rosalie and Emmett, and finally, a small house for Jacob, which sits further away from the other houses. He doesn't really like the smell of vampire.

The bell rings, loudly, and the students rise, taking their empty cafeteria trays to the deposits by the counters. Edward graciously takes mine, and dumps it. I carry his binder, and wait for him to return. Alice stands next to me, a mindful expression on her face.

"Bella," she says, "don't go to your next class."

"Why? What's wrong?"

"They're doing genetics in Bio, someone will think something's up."

I nod. "Thanks for the heads-up."

Edward returns, and looks at Alice, nodding. "Where do you wanna go," he asks, taking my hand. It feels so much warmer than it did before I turned, and his skin feels soft, smooth.

"Let's just go home. Last block is Gym."

He smiles, and waves over at Jacob and Renesmée as they make their way to their next class, Chemistry.

We make our way out of the crowded cafeteria, and head to the small parking lot to go. Waiting for us is the shiny silver Audi Edward bought for us last year. He moves to unlock the car, when suddenly, he freezes, stopping dead in his tracks.

"What's wrong?"

He stands there, unmoving, staring across the lot into the thick tree line. I look where he's looking, and pick out two red glinting eyes. Another one of us.

I stretch out my shield like an elastic band, enclosing Edward inside it. He snaps back to reality, and looks at me with fear in his eyes.

I take a few steps forward, and Edward stays close by my side.

"Who's there?"

The eyes disappear, and the vampire is gone.

"What was that," Edward breathes.

"I don't know," I say, taking his hand. "Let's just get out of here."

Back at the house, we sit together, in front of the fireplace. He holds a laptop on his knees, and furiously types, finishing up a final project for English class. I finished a week ago, the day we got the assignment, so I read my copy of Murakami's the Elephant Vanishes. The fire crackles happily, and the room radiates in its heat. Our cold skin never warms, but it's nice to act human sometimes.

Renesmée and Jacob arrive home around 4, and they immediately go off to her room to "hang out." Jacob promised me he wouldn't do anything to her until she was at least 20, so I'm not concerned, just a little uncomfortable. After all, Jacob had once been after my heart. Jacob gives me one last look before they retreat to her room, giving me a gentle wave.

"Let's get out of here," Edward suggests.

"Yeah," I say, glad to be out of the house.

I follow him, as he speeds off through the thick brush. As we run, he flashes his special crooked smile, the one I always liked. His beautiful golden eyes glint in the green light, and his face seems to sparkle in the dapples of sunlight that stream through the leaves.

We run for several miles, laughing, rushing, and breathing the cold air, before I get a whiff of something delicious.

"Do you smell that," I ask.

"Yeah," he says, smirking. "Your favorite."

I grin. "You up for a snack?"

"Definitely."

Suddenly, my senses heighten, and I hear the slightest sound, see the tiniest movement, and smell the succulent smell of Lynx.

I take off again, the trees whipping past me, and follow the smell that I love so much. Edward sort of laughs as he follows me, not hunting, but willing to help.

Suddenly, I stop, hit by a wall of stench that strikes me in the face like a truck.

"Whoa," Edward laughs, "what is that?"

I look around the small clearing we stopped in, looking for signs.

"It smells like Jacob here, but worse," I say, combing through the massive green patch for signs.

"Oh, oh no," Edward gasps, taking a step back.

"What," I ask, whipping my head around.

Suddenly, Edward is in front of me, his hand shielding my eyes.

"You don't need to see this," he says.

I shove his hand to the side, and push past him, predicting that he's grab my wrist and moving it out of the way before he has a chance to think or react.

"What is it," I ask, looking where he was looking.

Suddenly, my throat drops into my stomach, and I'm hit by a wave of realization.

Maybe it would have been better never to have seen this.

"I'm so sorry," Edward sighs.

"Oh my god," I shake, reaching out toward the figure I see before me.

"I know," Edward says, wrapping me in his arms.

On the mossy ground, between flowers and beautiful greenery, the figure of a young woman lies.

Her eyes lay open, her irises and pupils clouded over, and her copper skin drained of all color.

On her bare shoulder, she bears a familiar tattoo, a circular tribal design, worn by only one group of people.

The Quileutae Werewolves.


	2. Chapter 2 - Wolves

Chapter 2 - Wolves

 _Despair helps no one._

 _I will use my hands,_

 _I will do something._

 _I will do what is right,_

 _If only to repair what has been broken._

Edward bends over to look at the young girl, turning her over onto her back. Her pale copper skin looks waxy, and cold, and mouth hangs open, just slightly. A thin trail of deep red blood drips from the corner of her mouth. I wrinkle my nose from the smell. Edward adjusts her head, and pushes the hair back from her neck, where there is a small mark surrounded by bruises. The flesh is punctured, the perfect outline of two fangs which dug into her skin the only tell for what happened to her.

"She's been bitten." Edward swallows, hard.

"How? Nobody in our family would do that!"

"It wasn't one of us," he seethes. "Someone else has been here, and killed her."

I take a step back, tears welling up in my eyes.

"Carlisle needs to see this," Edward mutters.

Suddenly, we hear a rustle in the brush behind us, and Alice and Carlisle appear behind us.

"Edward," Alice gasps.

"What happened," Carlisle asks, his voice quavering.

Edward doesn't answer, he just brushes the hair away from the wound again, and Carlisle gasps.

"And she's a wolf," I say, showing him the tattoo.

"Who," Carlisle starts.

"We don't know," Edward replies, "but it's not one of us."

Carlisle doesn't reply, he just shakes his head, and hoists the body up in his arms. Alice follows, tears brimming in her eyes.

"Come on," Edward sighs. "We'll have to warn the others."

Rosalie looks down at the young werewolf in disgust. She winces while Carlisle explains that she had been bitten, and that none of us could have done it.

"So, who is she," Emmet asks, looking over at Jacob.

Jacob stands in the corner of the room, silent, and cold. His arms are folded across his chest, and his jaw is flexed, a small vein visible against his neck. "I don't know. Sam doesn't know, either," he answers, his voice gruff and low.

Renesmée reaches out for his hand, but he swats it away, his anger nearly boiling over. Edward shoots him an angry glance, reminding him to keep his temper in check, especially around Renesmée.

"She's not a Quileutae werewolf," Alice suddenly says. "I thought she was, but look!" She snatches Jacob's arm and drags him over to the girl, comparing tattoos. His tattoo had a Native American depiction of two wolves, mirrored. Hers was a literal drawing of a wolf, howling at the moon, with traditional geometric designs where the night sky would be.

"The designs are similar, but not the same," Alice explains. "She's from another tribe."

"Why would there be werewolves up here," Jacob snaps.

Alice takes a step back. "Someone's been using this place as a hunting ground."

"That doesn't make sense, how could they not get caught," Edward asks.

"I don't know," Alice says, retreating back to an open-armed jasper, who kisses her on the head.

"At least you tried," he says. She smiles.

"So someone has been using this place as a hunting ground for long enough to make a group of people create a tribe of shapeshifter werewolves," Carlisle says.

The room grows silent. It just doesn't make any sense.

The next morning, a heavy storm drenches the whole town in rain, making driving impossible for us, since our road out of the lot is made of dirt. Instead, we run to school, while Emmet drives the jeep with Jacob and Renesmée. Rosalie refuses to go to school, complaining that it's too muddy for her to even think about running around. It turns out that just Edward, jasper and I run, leaving Alice behind, who, like Rosalie, despises running in the rain.

We arrive at school an hour before it starts, so we decide to hang out in the forest for a while. The tall deciduous trees sparkle green in the rain, tiny droplets of water bursting on the mossy ground. If we had been alive, our breath would have turned to mist in the chilled air.

Edward holds my hand as we stand below a particularly tall oak tree, staring at me with those beautiful topaz eyes. His mouth twists into that beautiful crooked smile, and I can't help but get embarrassed.

"Why did you fall in love with me," I ask. "I was just an ugly, weak human."

"I think I've answered that question before," he says, laughing. "To put it simply, you're exactly right for me." He leans over and plants a kiss on my forehead, squeezing me close to him.

I smile, breathing in his scent.

"We should go," he finally says. "Our classmates are looking for us."

I sigh as he pulls away, but he never lets go of my hand. Together we bolt off back toward the school, watching the trees whip by.

"Bella," a young girl with dark skin and dark eyes calls.

"Good morning, Dahlia," I reply, smiling gently.

"I've been looking for you all morning," she says, folding her arms.

"Yeah, I was with-"

"Edward," she sighs. "You know, you can't spend all your time with your boyfriend and his family."

I snicker.

"What are you laughing at," she whines.

"You're so funny, sometimes," I giggle.

"It's a valid point," she sulks. "I wanna spend time with you, is that so bad?"

"Not at all," I say, wiping a tear from my eye. If only she knew.

"So... Saturday?"

Crap. On Saturday I'm supposed to go hunting. "Sure," I say, making a note to go Friday instead.

Dahlia smiles, victorious. "Finally!"

"Do you have something against my boyfriend," I ask.

"Other than the fact that he steals you from me all the time, you mean?"

"Yeah."

"Well," she starts, "he's always with you, and he doesn't let you have much space. He's constantly staring at you like he thinks you're going to run away, and I hate his weird smile."

"You mean his adorable crooked smile," I ask.

"Ugh, I can't believe you think that's cute." She shudders. "Anyway, I just feel want you to get some time away from him. It's like he owns you or something."

I smile. "Well, I guess it would be nice to have a night off."

We walk together to our next class, where Edward waits for me, patiently.

"Hey," Dahlia says, "I wanna ask you something, without him being around."

"Yeah?"

"Your sister, Renesmée, I was wondering..."

"What?"

"She looks like you, but she also looks a lot like him..."

Whoa.

"You think so?"

"Yeah, it's kind of weird. Like, he's not related to you, right?"

"No, not as far as I know."

"Maybe it's just a weird coincidence."

"Yeah," I mumble, turning back to join Edward again, as Dahlia marches off to find her seat.

"You have an observant friend," Edward mumbles so quietly, that no one else can hear.

"I don't know how she picked up on it so fast."

"This is why we don't usually make friends at school."

That Friday, Carlisle reports that the werewolf girl's missing person's poster was hanging in the police box, so someone is missing her. We know she wouldn't be coming home, but we have to do something about it, tow put their mind at rest.

Carlisle retreats into his office to work, trying to cover up the damage done by the unknown vampire. He'll then take it to the morgue and report that she was found dead in the forest, of hypothermia.

Meanwhile, I go out with Dahlia, without Edward. He smirks when I remind him of our plan, and kisses me on the cheek as I leave. Dahlia waits for me by the goodroast cafe, two cups of hot coffee in her hands.

"I got you a hot chocolate, since I don't know what you like in your coffee," she says, giving me a glorious smile.

I take the cup and sip, the disgusting taste of chocolate hitting me like a wave . "Thanks," I say, wiping the corners of my mouth. I haven't eaten human food in a very long time.

"So, I thought we could go to the new bookstore, and then go to a matinee showing of Pink Guns." She sips her coffee eagerly, savouring the bitter taste.

"Sounds like fun," I say, taking another large sip. I do my best not to wince when I taste the disgusting brown liquid.

"Good. I want to check out this new book."

I smile over at her, happy to be in her presence, but less than impressed to be here.

We make our way across the "busy" street, and enter the large bookstore.

Dahlia gasps as she walks through the doors, making a heeling for the book that's on display. She squeals as she lifts the brightly colored book, exclaiming that the author is her favourite.

The book is some stupid novel about a girl who dies and comes back to life. I shake my head, and turn to her.

"Is this what you were here for?"

"No," she sighs, "I wanted to go to the occult section."

Whoa. "What for?"

"I... It's embarrassing," she says. "I'm probably just being paranoid, but..."

"What's up?"

"One of my friends has been acting weird lately, and last week she went out and never came home."

"Really," I ask.

"Have you seen her?"

"What did she look like?" I try to keep myself from freaking out. We may have found her friend dead in the woods.

"Well, she's Native, she's got short hair and a huge tattoo on her shoulder."


	3. Chapter 3 - Bite

Chapter 3 - Bite

 _How much pain can one person endure?_

 _This is not measured in strength_

 _But in the resolve of a person_

 _To be okay._

"Are you okay," Dahlia asks, fanning me with the book she holds. I realize that for a second I stopped breathing, and blacked out.

"Whoa, sorry."

"What's wrong with you today," she demands.

"It's nothing," I say, "I'm fine."

"Oh," she says, sarcastically. "You're fine. Great. Is this Edward's fault?"

"What?"

"You guys need some distance if he is going to... Do that stuff to you."

"Whoa," I stop her. "That is none of your business there missy. Besides which, that did not happen last night."

She shrugs. "Whatever you say. But really, could you keep an eye out for my friend?"

"Yeah," I stutter. "I'll let you know if I see her."

"Thanks," she smiles. "Now, I need to grab that book."

"Why are you jumping straight to the occult?"

"Are you a doubter?"

"No," I laugh, "but it is quite a leap."

"I know, but... I saw - something. I'm not sure what it was. Tall as a human, but huge, and furry, with glowing yellow eyes."

"What do you think it was?"

"I dunno, but I intend to find out."

I finally get back home late that afternoon, drained from the social interaction. I've never been super outgoing before, but today, it's been especially hard. I love Dahlia, but it's hard to be around her sometimes.

Alice welcomes me back to the house with a halfhearted grin, and knowing eyes. Carlisle stands beside her, his face downturned into a frown. Of course she saw.

Carlisle doesn't say anything, but he motions for me to follow him, and leads me to his study.

The study in this house towers over two or three stories, lined with bookcases and ladders, filled with books. He must have one of every book in existence in this room, and on one section of wall, he has a collection of as many translations of the Bible as he could find, surrounding a single book in the middle, a replica he had made of his father's Bible from when Carlisle was a boy.

"We have a problem on our hands now," he begins, leaning on his desk.

"What's the problem?"

"Well, the werewolf girl was definitely killed by a vampire, but we don't know who it is. This may actually be their hunting territory."

"Or," I argue, "they were a nomad, passing through."

"I don't think so," he says, gesturing to the secret door which leads to his at home medical room.

I pull the book out from the case and the the bookcase swings away to reveal the sterile white steps.

"You're sure you want to see?"

"Yeah," I say, making my way down the stairs.

At the bottom of the steps another body lies on the examination table, another Native American person. His hair is also short and cropped, and his skin seems to glow with this pale sheen. On his right shoulder he has the same tribal tattoo as the other girl, a wolf surrounded by tribal patterns.

"Whoa," I step back, and knock over a few beakers.

Suddenly, Carlisle is next to me, steadying me. "Esmé found him on her hunt this morning. This is the second one we've found, killed the same way."

"Do you think the tribe knows?"

"We haven't been able to locate the tribe, all we know is that someone may be purposefully only killing werewolves."

"Jake-"

"He'll be fine if he sticks around with the rest of us. Besides which, from what he could gather, these wolves were inexperienced, so they didn't know what they were doing. Jacob does."

I swallow, hard, and try to force the tears which threaten to spill over my eyes back.

"Now we have to find out who's been doing this." Carlisle strokes my back, a soothing movement.

"Is she okay?" Edward calls from the top of the stairs.

"Ed..."

Suddenly, I'm in his arms, and he's holding me close, letting me feel his breathing, and pulling me close to his neck.

"You should take her back," Carlisle says. "She shouldn't go to school tomorrow, and you should watch her."

Edward nods, and carries me up the stairs back to the study.

"Do you want to walk?" He stops, giving me the chance to get down. I unsteadily move away, trying to stand by myself, but something happens, I feel a jolt and I'm back up in his arms.

"Sorry," I gasp.

"You're just as clumsy as you were when you were human," he laughs.

"Yeah," I say. "I guess I am. Could you carry me back?"

"Of course."

The next day, I feel much better, so I go to school even though Carlisle advised me not to. The day passes in mundanity, but I can't help but keep my eye on Jake, just to make sure nothing happens to him. He doesn't really notice, even when I ask Edward to watch his thoughts when I can't see him.

When lunch arrives, we decide to sit with my friends. Dahlia seems happy to see me, but the others don't really like my family. Nyla, a girl who reminds me of Angela, scooches over to let me sit next to her, but she just gives Edward a cold stare when he even looks at her. Then Kyle; a tall boy who looks a lot like mike, only speaks to me, not to anyone else. He actively tries not to look at Edward, and Edward laughs quietly next to me, undoubtedly reading his thoughts.

Alice joins us, and is much more popular among these people. Here, being a psychic is normal, so nobody is surprised she has visions. They all crowd around her, eager to hear what she has to say. They ask her what she dreamt about last night, and I try to force back a laugh.

Alice smiles. "I dreamt that a young girl ran out into the woods without anyone around her, and then got lost, and that she's still there."

They look at her, confused.

"It's a weird dream, isn't it?"

"Not really," Dahlia says, gnawing on her chopsticks. "I've had a similar dream for the last few days."

"Really," Alice says, looking back at her tray.

"But for me, that dream is real. My friend; Marie, is missing."

"That's so sad," Alice says, looking at her with a certain sadness in her eyes.

I try not to look at her too much, and instead turn towards Edward. He grins, and hugs me close for a moment, and I feel happy and protected.

Alice picks up the apple on her tray, and raises it to her lips, when suddenly her eyes gloss over. Her mouth drops open, slightly, and she let out a little yelp before falling forward onto her tray.

"Alice?"

She doesn't respond, she just lays there, limp.

"Edward," I remind him, and he pulls out his smartphone. Within a few seconds, Jasper is at the door of the cafeteria, and he races to get to Alice,

"Hey," he whispers, gently. "I'm here, love, it's okay."

Alice slowly lifts her head, her eyes half-lidded. Then, Edward suddenly stiffens, her vision making him react.

"She's having a vision," says Julia, a girl who reminds me of Jessica.

"Ooh," Dahlia says, eagerly looking at Alice for her explanation.

When Alice's eyes finally come back to normal, she looks immediately at Edward.

"What is it," I whisper so quiet that only us vampires can hear.

"It's complicated," she says. "I'll explain later."

I turn to Edward, hoping he'll explain, but he just looks at me, fear in his eyes.

"What was your vision about," asks Nyla.

"It was about the test this afternoon," Alice says, lying through her teeth. "Have you guys studied for your social test?"

"What social test," Julia says, horrified.

"You didn't study?" Dahlia punches Julia's shoulder. "Dude, you're gonna fail!"

They descend into an argument about Julia's intelligence, and Jasper takes Alice's hand, leading her out of the cafeteria. She whispers under her breath to him, telling him about the vision, but he remains calm, which, in turn, makes the rest of us calm down.

I look over at Jacob and Renesmée, who sit together, oblivious to what just happened. They hold hands, and eat their lunches, Renesmée with her bottle of cougar blood mixed with hot cocoa, and Jacob with his tray of cafeteria foods.

Edward glances at me, and lifts his eyebrow. He wants to know what I'm thinking.

Obediently, I push my mental shield away from myself, so he can read my thoughts.

"They're going to be fine," he whispers in my ear. "You don't have to worry."

I know, I think, but I can't help but think this has something to do with them.

Edward gingerly kisses my cheek. "Everything's going to be okay."

I pull my shield back, and lean back into his arms.

"Okay."

"It's the Volturi."

We gather around Alice late that night. She trembles as she tells the story, leaning back into Jasper's arms.

"What about them," Rosalie asks, a tremble in her voice.

"They call for aid," Alice says. "They are under attack and need us to defend them."

"What do you mean? Who's attacking them," Carlisle asks.

"The Romanian Vampires have created an army," Edward says.

"You mean Vladimir and Stefan?" I look up at him, my lip trembling.

"Them and their coven have created a huge army, and they're going to take down the Volturi," Alice says, looking at Edward, knowingly.

"But, how?" Emmett hugs Rosalie to himself.

"Nobody could possibly take down the Volturi," Esmé protests.

"You haven't seen her," Alice says, cryptically.

"Who?"

"Anastasia Maria."


	4. Chapter 4 - Anastasia

Chapter 4 - Anastasia

 _Fear is the reason we are alive._

 _Our fear is a protection from things which would hurt us._

 _But what happens when you have no fear?_

 _Do you throw yourself into the fray?_

"Who is Anastasia Maria," I ask.

"Anastasia Maria is the Romanian coven's most powerful asset," Edward explains. "Her powers are... Incredible, devastating."

"What does she do?"

"She kills anyone she locks eyes with. she leaves you frozen in your steps until you disintegrate into dust."

I shudder.

"Does she have a weakness," Emmet asks.

"None that I could find," Alice says, grimly. "She's an unstoppable beast."

"What about the others? Vladimir and Stefan said they have a coven of eight," Esmé asks.

"They do," Edward answers. "Two other men, and three women besides Anastasia Maria. One of the men can harden his body so much its impossible to even scratch him, and another woman can turn into water and then turn back into a vampire at a moment's notice. Then one of the other women can make herself intangible, so that even if you try to hit her, your hands just go straight through her. They're beasts of nature."

"If we join the Volturi, how would we stop them," I ask.

"I don't know. Their powers are incredible, it's impossible to stop them. Our best bet might be to join the Romanian Coven."

"The Romanians weren't very impressed by our diet and our newest familial addition," Carlisle reminds us.

I nod. "How can we stay together as a family if we join either side? Every way, we'll be beaten down."

Edward sighs. "There's nothing we can do."

"We don't have to decide now," Alice says. "The Romanians don't plan on attacking until the end of the year, during the new year's celebration. That's when they'll strike."

"Then we should think about it," Jasper finally says. "Until then, let's just go back to our lives here."

"Which reminds me," Carlisle says, "Jake, we need you to do something you might not like doing."

"What's that," he asks, raising an eyebrow.

"We need you to stay close. I don't want you going out without one of us with you. And Renesmée doesn't count, she's not strong enough."

"Why," Jacob asks, disgruntled.

"We don't want to lose you, too," Esmé explains.

Jake is hesitant at first, but nods, and scans the faces of the vampires around him. "I'd rather not lose any of you, either."

"Bella!"

Dahlia's eyes are wide with fear, and she clasps my hands in her own.

"Bella, come on!"

I snap out of my daze. "Sorry," I smile. I know the only reason I'm so dizzy is because I haven't eaten in a while. But I can't eat around Dahlia. I might end up hurting her.

"You're really out of it," dahlia says, her expression changing from fear to concern. "You're sure you're okay? You're eating right at home?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," I lie.

"You've been hanging out with me too much lately," she scolds. "You need to go home and take care of yourself."

"No, I'll be fine," I protest. I can't leave her alone. With everything that's been happening, I don't want her to accidentally go out too far in the woods and get attacked by that vampire.

"So," I ask, "how has the search for your friend gone?"

"They found her, she's dead." Dahlia says, somberly.

"I'm so sorry."

"That's not the worst of it. One by one all the people on her reservation are disappearing."

"What?" My heart drops.

"Yeah. They've lost at least ten people now."

How could I be so stupid? Of course Alice can't see when they're being attacked, and Edward doesn't know any of them, so he's not watching.

"Would it be okay for us to visit the reservation? To pay our respects?"

"I think so. We could go tomorrow after school."

"Why not today?"

"Well, if you don't have plans," she says.

"Nope, I'm wide open," I smile. "We should take Edward and Jacob with us."

"Jacob? You mean your sister's boyfriend?"

"Yeah," I say. "He had some similar things happen to his family on his old reservation, too."

"Fine," she sighs. "If that's really what you want."

After school is out, the four of us take Edward's silver Audi, and make our way down the shifting dirt roads to the small Blackfoot reservation. The area is fenced off with chain-link, and just inside the gates are several houses, dilapidated and falling to pieces, what little material that holds the structure together is rotted and fraying. Jacob audibly cringes when he sees them, remembering the sub-standard but sturdy houses of his old home.

"Do people really live here," he asks, his nose wrinkled in disgust.

"Once upon a time," Dahlia sighs, "but now they live closer together in the center of the reservation. They have several little houses there, and everyone just lives there."

Jacob breathes relief, and looks at me with a much happier face.

The car sort of shudders as it quickly zips down the dirt road, little rocks and bits of sand fly up into the air from the tire treads. As we move, I look outside at the vast fields, yellowed by time. It's almost the end of autumn, and the tall grass withers in the cold air.

"Just up here," Dahlia says, directing Edward at a fork in the road, and we pass through into a small neighborhood. The area is circular, with yellow vinyl-slatted houses surrounding a large communal campfire area, with one extremely large fire pit in the center, most likely used for bonfires. Many people are there, in that area, talking and fretting. Edward's look tells me that they're discussing the werewolf issues.

"That house, there," Dahlia says as set points to a particular yellow house, "that's where Marie lived. I remember playing hopscotch in her backyard and spending our weekends at the bonfire, telling ghost stories."

"I'm so sorry," I say, doing what I can to comfort her. "I'm sure your friends will stop disappearing and the ones who are gone will come back home," I assure her.

Edward looks on with a grim face.

"Dahlia, maybe we should let Jacob talk to the residents. We can go for a walk. I want to hear all about Marie."

She nods, and when the car pulls to a stop, she follows Edward and I away from the circle.

Jacob waves quickly as he walks away, his brows upturned in a concerned expression. He can hear them, too.

The residents fret for a while as Dahlia, Edward and I make our way out of the circle, until Jacob finally makes it over to them.

Dahlia talks about the things she did with Marie, while Jacob talks to the officials, and the chief.

"Who are you," the chief asks.

"My name is Jacob Black, and I'm from the Quileutae tribe in Washington. I know what you are."

"What do you mean?"

"Your people have the same power as my people. But this power is new to you and you do not understand how to use it," he explains.

"What power?"

"You are werewolves," he says as he reveals his shoulder tattoo.

"I see that it is futile to hide this from you. But why is it you care?"

"Because you don't know how to control your powers, and I can teach you."

"But why are our children turning into these monsters," asks a concerned elderly woman.

"Werewolves only have one enemy, and when that enemy isn't around, the gene lies dormant. But now that our enemies have come here, your gene is activating, and your children are changing. This isn't something to be afraid of," he says, seeing their concerned expressions. "The gene is a defense mechanism. What should make you afraid is the enemy."

"What is the enemy?"

"Vampires," Jacob says grimly. "Yes, they exist. They are the reason so many of you have gone missing."

"How can we stop them?"

"You can learn to control your power."

"Would you teach us?"

"I will help any way that I can."

We return with Dahlia a short time later, and Jacob is just wrapping up his discussion with the tribe leaders.

"Did you exchange ghost stories," asks Dahlia, hip-bumping Jacob as she passes him.

"Nah, we blabbed on about tribal treaties and stuff," he lies, smiling back at her.

"Can we take you back home, Dahlia," asks Edward.

"No, I think I'll stick around with my friends here. I'll get home by myself."

She waves as we make our way back to the Audi, and blows kisses at me.

As soon as the doors on the car are closed, I launch into interrogation mode.

"When are you planning on coming back," I ask Jake, speaking quickly and clipped.

"Tonight," he replies. "I want to watch the area, and I'd like to take one of you guys with me to introduce the leaders to the good vampires."

"I'm sure we can find someone to go with you," Edward assures him.

"If no one else volunteers-"

"No," Jake interrupts, "they've seen you before. I need someone new. Maybe Alice or Jasper, or even Emmet."

"No chance of Rosalie, huh," laughs Edward.

"I'd rather not have miss drama queen herself hanging out with me all night."

"Well, I'll guarantee Alice won't go with you," I tell him.

"I didn't think she would. It's okay though, I'll take one of the boys."

Edward smirks. "Sounds like a fun night. Jacob and the boys. Meanwhile we'll be thinking about which side to take in the upcoming war."

"Sounds more fun than standing watch for seven hours."


	5. Chapter 5 - Nightfall

Chapter 5 - Nightfall

 _Life is unpredictable._

 _We feel as though everything happens to others, never to us._

 _What a naïve thought._

 _Only then are we surprised when something does go wrong._

Nightfall comes all too quickly. The cold air of late fall bites at the skin, or it would, if I could feel it. The night becomes silent, or at least, silent to the human ear. To me, the night is a chorus of voices, the gentle rustling of the leaves, the sounds of animals making their homes in the trees and dirt, and the constant rushes of the wind, which bring a symphony of smells to my nose. I smell elk, puma, and several different types of birds. The nighttime seems to sleep, the quiet constant breath of the world the only movement.

I stand just outside the house, my hands in the pockets of my parka. The cools night breeze blows through my hair, and the whispers of night tingle in my ears. Behind me, Edward waits, his eyes glazed over from concentration. His sweet aroma is carried by the wind, and his smell fills my nostrils, making me smile.

I turn back to look at him, but he doesn't see me. His brow is twisted into a concerned furrow, his mouth downturned with worry.

"What's wrong," I ask.

"It's nothing," Edward says. "I don't want you to worry. I've gotta go."

He struts past me, his eyes wide with concern and fear.

"Edward," I call after him. "You've already got me worrying, just tell me what's wrong!"

He shakes his head, and takes off in the direction of Rosalie and Emmet's cottage, the darkness of night swallowing him up.

 _Jacob_

"It's sure is cold, isn't it?"

Jasper looks back at me with a sort of half grin. "I wouldn't know. I can't feel the cold."

I let out a quiet chuckle. "Yeah, I suppose."

"So," Jasper smiles, "is life going well for you and Renesmée?"

"Never better," I reply, remembering the beautiful light brown eyes of the girl I love. "What about you and Alice?"

"Everything's just fine," he says, looking out into the distance, his mouth curled up into a slight grin.

Suddenly, we hear a quiet rustling in the brush. Our breathing suddenly becomes silent as we listen for the noise again, and hear nothing.

"What was that," I breathe.

"I'm not sure," Jasper says, focusing his power to calm me down. I feel my breath slow down, and a feeling of peace passes through me.

"Whatever it is, it's probably not good."

"Let's check it out, then," Jasper suggests.

We creep silently through the brush, our eyes searching for the source of the noise. The rustling of the trees, the snapping of twigs beneath our feet, the quiet whispers of night are all that we hear.

Jasper turns to me, a confused expression on his face.

Suddenly, a dark figure leaps out of the brush, and I feel a scream welling up in me as it bears down on me, its bright red eyes almost glowing in the dark. Its long pointed teeth glide into my skin, creating deep cuts in my throat. I hear the monster gulping, and feel its chapped lips brush against my skin, trapping my blood inside its mouth.

My vision begins to fade and I look over at Jasper, who stares at me in horror.

Then everything goes black.

 _Bella_

Edward and Emmet leave almost immediately, their frantic steps leaving large patches of sod torn up and strewn about the yard. All I can do now is hug my pillow in fear, and wait for the morning to come and for their return.

My fingers find their way to a throw pillow, a small one covered with velvet on one side and faux fur on the other. I clutch the pillow to my chest, feeling the unfamiliar emotion of pure and utter terror. It's not long before I begin to hyperventilate, and I realize it may be better to wait with Carlisle and Esmé than sit here and suffer alone.

Still holding the pillow, I make my way to their house, as fast as my feet will carry me.

Inside, Carlisle is already waiting for me, probably predicting that I'd come running. His arms are already open wide, and I run right into them, feeling my chest heave as I let out a sob.

"What's going on," I ask, clutching the fabric of his shirt in between my fingers.

Carlisle doesn't answer, but he leads me to the couch, and sets me down. He hands me a thick blanket, and motions for me to stay there and wait, and I nod, tears now spilling over my cheeks and onto the upholstery.

I wait for a few moments, and then Jasper enters the room, his eyes wide with fear and his clothes soaked with blood. His hair is mussed up completely, clumps standing up every which way. Alice enters just after him, her already wide eyes even wider with fear and trepidation.

"What's going on," I ask, looking at the blood on his shirt.

"We were attacked," Jasper gasps. "The vampire who's been killing all those werewolf kids.

I feel myself get to my feet, but I didn't intend to. Alice immediately races over and holds me back.

"Is Jake okay" I demand.

"No," Jasper admits. "He was bitten and I had to carry him here, barely breathing. Carlisle says there's no venom in him but he's badly scarred and doesn't have much blood left. He's giving him a transfusion now."

"Will Jake be okay? What about the people on the reserve?"

"We don't know about Jake, but Edward and emmet are watching the reserve now. They'll probably be fine," he says, his eyes now calming down, and I feel his power come over me as well. My breathing slows down, and I collapse back into my spot on the couch.

"Please," I whisper to myself, "come home safe."

"Hey," Jasper calls.

I look up, finally pulling my tear-soaked pillow away from my face. His eyes are serene, quiet.

"We need to talk," he explains, and nods.

I nod back, and slowly get to my feet, feeling my heart weighed down by fear, but somehow being able to saunter over to him, so he can walk me to the next room.

We congregate in Carlisle's office, wearing somber expressions. Carlisle and Esmé stand in the center of the room, leaning on his desk. Alice stands in the corner, her dark eyes darting from face to face. Rosalie holds Renesmée in her arms, her niece's shoulders heaving and her sobs loudly echoing through an otherwise silent room.

"We need to talk about the monster who attacked Jacob," Carlisle says, his face grim.

"Monster," Rosalie asks.

"One of our kind, but too deranged to be one of us."

"The monster only drinks the blood of werewolves, our mortal enemy. Or at least, the ordinary vampire's mortal enemy," Esmé explains.

"How does that make this person deranged," asks Rosalie.

"The blood of a werewolf is toxic to vampires," Carlisle explains. "I've seen it. It turns the brain mad, and all that the monster can think is how much they want more. Usually, these monsters die before they can find more werewolves, but this one found a whole tribe. They're just waiting for each child of the tribe to phase, and then they attack."

"They must have been living here for a while, then," Alice mutters. "The only reason they started phasing is because there were vampires nearby."

"Not necessarily. We have been here long enough for this person to have found this place after we had been here for a few months and the children started phasing."

Alice nods, lost in thought.

"When will Emmett and Edward be back," asks Rosalie.

"Morning. I don't think the monster has the audacity to hunt during the day. Besides which, they just had a meal, and won't be hungry for a while now."

"What about Jake," I manage to force out.

Carlisle looks at me with discouraging eyes. "We don't really know," he says.

Renesmée and I let out a wail of distress.

"In the meantime, we should focus on catching the monster," Carlisle says.

"How would we do that," asks Rosalie.

"We're not sure," Esmé says. "It might involve using Jacob as bait. But we can't until he's well enough to stand on his own."

"Jacob should be better soon," I say, almost pleading. "He has accelerated healing.

"Not from vampire bites. He'll need just as much time to heal as a human would. When a werewolf is bitten, they become weak, like humans. All that we can do for Jacob, and all that he can do for himself, is wait for the healing to finish."

"Great, and in the meantime, the monster will have eaten half the kids in the reserve," Rosalie shrieks.

"We'll have to watch the reserve for him. It's the least we can do for him. We can't have anyone else get hurt," Jasper says.

Rosalie calms down, and adjusts her hair, then folds her arms. "So what now?"

"Now, I guess we have to wait," Carlisle says. "All of you get some rest, and calm your minds. And Renesmée, I want you to sleep."

Renesmée nods, then crosses the room to me, burying herself in my arms.

"Would you sleep with me tonight?"

She knows I can't sleep, but her plea is so innocent, so childlike, and it's what she needs.

"Of course," I reply, and squeeze her tight.

We make our way back to cottage, my arm around her, and her leaning into my side, sharing the fear of losing our best friend.


	6. Chapter 6 - Phase

Chapter 6 - Phase

 _Perhaps the most terrifying fear is the fear of loss._

 _It strikes us to the core, and makes us tremble._

Edward and Emmett arrive home well after morning has broken. Edward's eyes dart back and forth, searching, scanning, while Emmett tenses and relaxes his muscles rhythmically. As he does so, his shoulders pop forward and back, as he flexes his back muscles.

I wrap Renesmée in my arms, and stroke her soft brown hair, as Edward makes his way over. He kisses her gently on her head, and then wraps his arm around me, pulling me in for a quick hug.

Carlisle makes his way over, his pale blond hair mussed and falling over his eyes, making his dark irises even darker. Rosalie follows in tandem, her arms folded across her chest and her mouth twisted down into a sour scowl. She makes her way to Emmett and wraps her arms around him, whispering something I can't hear. Edward soon scowls, which tells me she didn't say something nice.

"How did the night go," asks Jasper as he enters, a nervous Alice at his side.

Edward furrows his brow. "Not well. That vampire has a bad habit of attacking kids."

"Don't tell me someone else got hurt," exclaims Rosalie.

"No, we managed to keep him out of the camp, but he was persistent. I guess taking a bite out of Jake only whet his appetite," says Emmett, his eyes darkening. "He'll be back for more."

I shudder.

Carlisle gets up from his spot on the couch, and comes over to me, his hand extended in comfort. Edward loosens his grip, anticipating what Carlisle wants, and pushes me up to my feet, replacing me with Renesmée. Carlisle wraps his arms around me, placing his hand on my back and wrapping his other arm around my neck. He squeezes me tight in his arms, and all the emotions I had willed not to come rush back, my shoulders beginning to shake and shudder as a long moan escapes me, a guttural response, then gasps for air as I try to breathe. Tears burst forth, streaming down my cheeks in cascades of salty water. Carlisle moves his hand to the back of my head and presses it to his chest, letting me use his shirt as a tissue.

"It's going to be alright," he says, his voice barely louder than a whisper. He sounds confident, which makes me calm down a little, but I can't help but feel like he's just deceiving himself.

"We need to find him," Emmett growls.

"How? We have no idea what he looks like," Esmé interjects.

"I, I don't know," Emmett sighs. "But he has to pay for what he's done."

Edward nods. "We'll be watching."

When we return to school on Monday, something seems wrong with Dahlia. Her eyes are glossed over, and she stares off into nothing a lot. Her posture is lazy and sluggish, and she seems dazed.

"Are you alright," I ask her, trying to get her attention. When she doesn't answer, I put on a glove and shake her arm. I realize even through the material that she's burning up.

She looks at me, dazed and confused, and rubs her eyes.

"Oh, hey," she says, smiling. "How long have you been there?"

"All morning," I say, concerned. "You feel hot, you should go home."

"I'm fine," she says, rubbing her eyes again, then suddenly shivering violently.

"No, no you're not," I say, gripping her arm, and standing her up. She chair she's sitting on clatters backwards, and her legs seem to weaken.

"Put me back," she demands, her speech slurred.

"No," I reply, and I begin to drag her to the nurse's office.

Her skin is burning in now, and she begins to moan, her voice guttural and in pain. I thrust the door to the office open, where the nurse is standing, back to us. She gasps when the door smacks against the wall, and whips around to face us.

"She's got a fever," I explain, "it's really bad."

The nurse rushes over and brushes her hand over Dahlia's forehead. She lets out a little yelp at the temperature, and immediately rushes back to get a cooling pack from the freezer. "You can go now," she barks, wrapping the cold plastic pack in paper towel.

I nod, a little too quickly, and glance back at her. Her fingers twitch now, and she's moaning even louder.

This seems all too familiar, but it can't be.

She's not a member of the tribe.

I don't see Dahlia for a few days, supposedly recovering from her sickness. Even so, I can't help but wonder if this is something more serious. Could it be? No, no it couldn't. It's not possible. I shiver every time I think about it. Edward keeps a watchful eye on me, and waits for me to show him what I'm so afraid of, what I'm so nervous about. I'll have to show him at some point, but for now, he'll just have to wait until I'm ready.

Alice sits at the lunch table with us, attempting to fill the gap left by Dahlia, but she can't measure up. The others in the group are quiet and sullen without her. Eventually, everyone just stops trying to make conversation, and just eats instead.

"I'm sure she'll be fine," Edward reassures me. "It's probably just a cold."

I try to believe him, but I know I can't be sure. Instead, I focus on Renesmée, who sits by herself on the other side of the room. She had been so mesmerized by Jake, she'd never bothered to make friends, and she certainly doesn't want any help from her mother. I have to just let her be alone for now.

The day passes in mundanity, and when we eventually leave the school, it's a slow struggle to the car. Our shiny silver Audi waits for us outside, and Edward unlocks the door, expecting me to get into the passenger seat. Suddenly, impulse takes over, and I make my way over to the driver's side. Edward raises an eyebrow but doesn't say anything, just obediently getting into the passenger side.

"What's going on," he finally asks as we're pulling out of the parking lot.

"I can't just sit here and wait for an answer any more. We're going to the reservation."

"I don't think that's a good idea," he says, brushing the back of his hand against mine.

"We're going and that's final!"

He shies away, remembering the last time we got into an argument. I won.

We speed down the gravel road, the car jolting from side to side. I can tell that Edward wants me to slow down, but I can't. I'm too nervous. I have to see for myself.

We turn the corner into the reservation, and begin the bumpy trip down the uneven dirt path, my heart, though unbeating, pounds in my chest like a drum. Edward's eyes shift from side to side wary of the place.

We make our way into the central gathering area, and the people look at us, their eyes dark, and their mouths twisted into dark scowls.

"I don't think we're supposed to be here," Edward whispers.

"I don't care," I bark, and slam the door to the Audi behind me. I march right through the circle, and barge through the door of her house, letting the door swing on its hinges behind me. Edward races behind me, his feet making loud sounds on the wooden floor beneath him.

"Dahlia," I yell. "Dahlia where are you?"

I hear a quiet sound behind me, the quiet sigh of a girl finally found out. I whip around, my eyes searching for her.

"I was trying to stay away from you," she sighs.

"Why?"

"Because you're what turned me into a monster," she spits, fire of anger burning in her eyes.

"You're not a monster," I screech. "I'm the monster!"

"Yes, yes you are," she screams. "You bitch! You turned me into this! This is your fault!"

I feel my breath catch in my throat, and I begin to cry. "It doesn't have to be this way," I say. "Look at Jacob!"

"Yeah, look at Jacob! He got bitten, and now he's about to die because he stuck around with you guys!"

I step back, my breath heaving in my chest.

"I'm sorry," dahlia croaks, as she runs her fingers through her hair. "That was uncalled for."

I nod.

"I want to help," I whisper. "I want you to feel like you're not alone."

She nods. "But you can't, you aren't like me."

"Maybe not. But I can teach you about the real enemy."

She looks back at me, her eyes wide with wonder. "The real enemy?"

"Yes. The werewolf hunter."

"You mean the monster who killed my friends?"

I nod.

"But don't you do the same thing?"

"No," Edward suddenly interjects. "We consider ourselves to be... Vegetarians. We survive on the blood of animals."

She looks at him, incredulous. "Vegetarians?"

"It's strange, I know," he laughs. "But it's better than becoming a monster. Nobody has to be a monster, even when they're forced into a life of a monster. You have the choice to follow the rules laid out, or to break them. And know that this applies to you, too."

She nods. "Thanks."


	7. Chapter 7 - Watching

Chapter 7 - Watching

 _Watchful eyes are keen and discerning._

 _They discover even the most minute detail_

 _Put your trust in the watchful eyes,_

 _And discover the truth._

Edward and I decide to stay, and watch over the reserve that night. As long as we're there, the other vampire won't be getting to any of the werewolves inside. The night is cold, and thick flakes of snow fall from the sky, landing in my hair. Without body heat, they just stay there, and don't melt. At least it doesn't make me cold anymore. One of the best parts about being a vampire is that I can't get cold anymore. Edward watches me with wary eyes, paying attention to my every move. I don't mind that he watches me anymore, I've gotten used to his careful eyes being on me. I fold my arms, and scan the woods carefully.

Suddenly, Edward shift into a hunting stance, and starts to growl. I follow his eyes, and spot a pair of red eyes, gleaming in the low light.

"Do you think that's them," I ask, extending my shield to him.

"I'm not sure. The one who attacked Jacob would probably be much more savage."

The vampire steps out into the clearing.

She's dazzling. Her bright red eyes stand out against her dark skin, and her face is framed by thick, dark hair, straightened by a perm. Her full lips are dark red, and plump, and her figure is a bit wider than mine, with an hourglass waistline, and wide hips.

"Good evening," she says, with a bit of an African accent.

We don't reply, but Edward bares his teeth.

"That's quite the power you've got there," she smiles, taunting me. "I've never seen such a powerful shield."

"Who are you," I finally ask.

"How rude of me," she laughs. "My name is Faith. I've set up a permanent home a few miles from here."

"How," Edward asks, incredulous. "You obviously kill people."

"Yes, but I play it safe. There are a lot of suicidal teenagers this day and age."

I feel sick to my stomach just looking at her. "You kill mentally ill teenagers?"

"Hey, a vampire's gotta eat."

Edward scowls at her. "That's dirty."

She shrugs. "I am intrigued though. Your eyes are a different color from mine. Perhaps you could explain."

"I'm sure we'd love to, but right now, we're trying to prevent the people in this reserve from getting slaughtered."

She raises an eyebrow. "You're protecting them? But they're our mortal enemies!"

"Another thing we'd love to explain, if we weren't so busy."

She sighs. "I suppose I'll have to help you if I want to hear." She gets into the tree line and crouches like we had been before.

"What are you doing," I ask.

"I'm helping. You two should take your positions. This way there's three people rather than two."

"How can we trust you?"

She smirks. "Faith."

Edward sighs, and looks over at me. I tap my forehead to remind him to read her. He taps his in return, to let me know he already is.

I bolt off to the left, while Edward takes the right.

The night darkens, and I keep alert for noises, it doesn't matter from which direction. I keep my back to the village, and scan the trees, watching closely in the brush. What little movement I hear is from small animals, like squirrels and winter birds. I brush the snowflakes out of my hair, watching them gently float to the ground.

When the sun finally rises, the snow in my hair begins to melt, and I feel a cold stream of water down my back. I would shiver, if cold bothered me anymore. Edward appears beside me after a few moments, followed by Faith. She grins at us in the sunlight.

"Gettin our glitter on, are we," she asks.

I shake my head and the remaining snowflakes in my hair hit the trees and brush around us.

"Are we ready to go," asks Faith, raising one eyebrow at Edward.

"Follow us," he sighs. She nods, and eyes us suspiciously as we turn towards the town.

We take off at an alarming rate, blowing past trees bare of leaves. Snow kicks up behind us, covering our tracks. Edward takes a roundabout way back, probably waiting for Alice to get the others ready for our arrival. I can see her in my mind, racing around the lot in a mad dash, Jasper doing the same on the other side, trying to help.

"Are we almost there," asks Faith, her nervous eyes scanning the surroundings.

"Almost," I grunt as we approach the house.

Alice and the others wait for us, her arms crossed and her face sullen.

"This is quite the coven," Faith mutters.

"Welcome to the Cullen Coven," Carlisle smiles. "We're glad to meet another vampire here."

"Enchanted," Faith smiles. They shake hands, and she glances uneasily at the other members of the coven. She stops and stares for an extra moment when she glances at Rosalie, and Edward tenses next to me.

"What's up," I whisper.

"I'll tell you later," he says, kissing my forehead.

"This is the largest coven I've ever seen," she breathes. "How can you possibly live in such a large group, especially when you have a permanent residence?"

"Come inside, and we'll explain," Carlisle invites her.

She looks nervous, but a look from Jasper calms her nerves and she follows us.

"Animals?"

Faith looks at us, dumbfounded.

"How on earth did you discover that?"

Carlisle glances over at Edward, and Edward takes up the explanation.

"It was a rather unfortunate circumstance which lead Carlisle to the discovery," he explains. "It's a bit sensitive to talk about."

"Would you show me," Faith asks, her eyes wide with wonder.

Edward nods, and beckons to Emmett.

Renesmée and I decide to visit Jacob that afternoon, and then head back to the house. Renesmée stays focused on her homework rather than thinking about Jake, and I fret about Edward and Emmett. They still haven't returned yet, and it makes me nervous. We can't always trust other vampires. What if she got the drop on Emmett? What if they're dead, and she killed them? I shudder, nerves making my veins sing.

"Bella!"

I get up immediately, and my head whips toward his voice, a wave of relief washing over me. His eyes are freshly golden, and he wears a wide grin.

"Edward," I smile. "How was it?"

He kisses my forehead, and laughs. "She was blown away. She couldn't believe it! And entire coven of vampires living off of animal blood. She wanted to try it, and now she's thinking about switching her diet!"

I laugh with him. "That's amazing," I say, stroking his hair.

He hugs me close, breathing in my scent.

"I love you," he whispers.

"I love you," I reply, my lips grazing across his marble cheek. He brushes a lock of hair behind my ear, and takes my face in his hands, his eyes now half-lidded. He glances down at my lips, and I shiver. Then he grins that mischievous twisted smile that I love so much, and presses his lips against mine.

We haven't kissed in a while, so it feels a bit like the first time. Except, this time, he doesn't have to hold back. He pulls me closer, wrapping his arms around my waist and bringing me up so that I sit in his arms, and I wrap my arms around his neck, my fingers moving up into his hair. My eyelids flutter with every moment, the pure delight of kissing him filling my body and making me grin. We stay like this for a few moments, before he gives in to his urge and starts moving us towards the bedroom.

"Wait," I whisper, "Renesmée will hear us."

He stops, and puts me down, before moving to Renesmée's room and asking her to go to Rosalie and Emmet's house. She leaves, her head low, almost embarrassed.

"Maybe we should get her her own house when we move next time," Edward smirks.

"Maybe," I grin back, gathering the fabric of his shirt in my hand. He takes it, and helps me undress him. His marble chest, though stone cold, looks warm and inviting, and I move in to take my place against his skin.

He strokes my chin, angling it up so that I'm looking at him again, and gently kisses me on the lips again. Then he slides his hand against the fabric of my shirt until it reaches the small of my back, and leads me into the bedroom.

We wait until morning to get out of bed, his arms wrapped around me in a tender embrace. He gently kisses my skin, on the most sensitive places, especially on my neck. I lean into him, wanting him to keep touching me, even though we know it's time to get up, and keep moving. He kisses me one last time, long and tender on the lips, then gently nibbling on my lower lip.

"Good morning," he smiles, and climbs out if bed. The sun creeps in through the window, and his naked body glimmers in the bright morning light. I watch him from the bed, as he grabs some clothes from the closet and then moves to the shower. Only then do I get up, and move to get ready as well.

Suddenly, Alice bursts through the door, her eyes wide in panic. She lets out little yelps with every breaths, and her shoulders heave in complete and utter distress.

"Alice?"

"Bella, where is Edward," she demands.

"Shower," I mumble.

Edward bursts out of the bathroom, a towel hastily tied around his waist.

"It's the Volturi."

"What about them," I breathe.

"We have to make our decision, now," Alice says. "To either defend them, or destroy them."


	8. Chapter 8 - Missing

Chapter 8 - Missing

 _We all make decisions we later regret._

 _This is because we care._

 _Through all darkness and peril,_

 _Remember that your decisions may change fate._

We stand, motionless, in the underused kitchen. Carlisle crosses his arms across his body, and nervously stares at the floor, while Esmé next to him holds a soothing hand on his shoulder. His brow is furrowed into a dark expression, and his mouth is downturned into a scowl that could kill. Rosalie wears that same scowl, and her bright Amber eyes burn with the intensity of a forest fire. Emmet stands beside her, his usual calm and collected exposure dropped completely. He rubs his hands together, a nervous habit.

"So, what do we do?"

Everyone stares at Alice, who asked the question

"You must be able to see who wins this battle," Carlisle pleads.

"I can't. Its dependent on who we choose, right now. Should we stay loyal to the Volturi, or should we betray them in favour of the Romanian coven?"

"I- I don't know," Carlisle sputters. "I can't betray my friends, but I know that they are wrong!"

"It's better if the Volturi are dethroned, this is just one way to do it," Edward says, his eyes cold as ice.

"But what will the Romanians do when they take over? We don't know how evil their intentions are," Esmé objects.

"It's a necessary evil," Rosalie yells.

"No, it's not," Jasper retorts.

"Well, we have to choose, now," Alice screams. "We need to stop bickering and make a decision!"

An tangible silence falls over the room, and the tension of the atmosphere could be cut with a butter knife.

"So, what do we choose," Alice asks.

Carlisle looks up, tears brimming in his eyes. "We have no choice. We have to side with the Volturi."

Several of us look at him, disgruntled and uncomfortable, but we must accept his decision.

"I need to send a message to Aro," Alice says, her eyes half-lidded and tired.

She leaves the kitchen, and Rosalie and Emmet follow. While she walks tiredly, they tromp angrily, almost stomping. They don't want to have to be involved in this.

Edward takes my hand, gently, and holds it in his own, until we are joined by Renesmée, who wraps her arms around our shoulders, and squeezes tightly. Her head makes contact with ours, and we are suddenly struck by all of her worries. I see Jacob, his pallor grey and his eyes clouded over, and then I see all of us, ripped to pieces and burning in the darkness. She lets a teardrop fall from her eye, hot and wet, and it lands on my cheek.

We walk, together, out of the house, and move to our cottage, Edward and I carefully watching over Renesmée as we walk.

"Do you think we'll have to leave soon," asks Renesmée, shyly.

"I don't know," I reply, "but I hope we have some time. We have to take care of the werewolves at the reservation."

"Do you think they might help us?"

"We can't be sure," Edward says. "They don't fully trust us."

"No one does," Renesmée mumbles, her expression turning from sadness to an angry scowl.

"We can't say that for sure," Edward says, "at least your grandfather trusts us."

"He has to," Renesmée points out. "He's mom's dad."

"He's also the chief of police," I tell her. "He has to be very careful with who he trusts, but he's chosen to trust our judgement. Which is why he let us leave."

She grumbles, quietly, as we approach the house.

"I think it's time for you to go to bed, hon." I take Renesmée's hand and lead her to her room, then pull her in for a long-awaited hug.

"Can we go hunting tomorrow," she asks. "I want to get this whole thing off my mind."

"Sure, hon," I tell her, and kiss her on her forehead. She smiles, gently, and pulls me in for one last hug before retreating to her room. "Sweet dreams."

Edward and I sit on the bed in our room, and I nervously pick at my fingers, even though I can't get so much as a hangnail now.

"What do we do about the werewolves," Edward asks nobody in particular.

"What will they say when they find out about the vampire leaders," I ask myself.

Edward jolts out of bed, his eyes wide with realization. "Would they join us?"

"What do you mean?"

"If they joined us in our defense against the Volturi, we could use them as a secret weapon against the Romanians."

"But the Romanians know that we at friends with the Quileutes, wouldn't they find it easy to believe that we found more werewolves where we are now?"

He lets his shoulders relax, and realizes that what I just told him is important. "You're right," he says. "But then what do we do? We can't fight against someone who kills with a single look!"

"We have to," I mumble. "We have to try."

Monday morning comes, and Edward and I wait patiently for the sun to rise in the living room. He sits in a deep red suede chair, holding a copy of a book titled _The Girl at the Origin._ I've read the book before, and when I asked him if he had read it, expecting a resounding yes, he surprised me with a "no." I sit opposite him, in a chair which completely encircles by body from behind, constructed out of comfortable fleece and faux fur. I read a book that Edward has read, while I haven't. Its cover reads _Hammer_ , and it was written in about the seventies. It's not the most interesting work I've read, but it's mindless.

When the sun finally rises over the horizon and tiny beams of golden light stream through the trees, I look up, quickly bookmarking my page.

"Morning," I say, quietly.

"So it is," Edward replies.

I move to the kitchen to cook Renesmée some breakfast, while Edward goes to wake her up. I decide I'll make her something she can have with a little bit of leftover elk blood, something sweet to counteract the bitterness of the elk blood. Their blood isn't much to taste, rather bitter and sour, which is why she so prefers mountain lion blood or Lynx.

I place the frying pan on the stove, and turn on the burner, watching the blue flames lick the sides of the pan.

Suddenly, Edward bursts into the kitchen.

" _She's gone._ "

I whip my head around to look at him.

"What?"

"She's not in her bed. I can't find her anywhere."

"Can't you read her thoughts and find out where she is?"

"I'm trying to, but all I can see when I look is blackness."

I drop the warm pan on the floor, and it clatters around on the ground.

"She must have been kidnapped!"

"What do we do? I can't see her!"

"Neither can Alice," I sigh, remembering the hole in her vision.

He runs his fingers through his hair in distress. "I didn't hear anything last night, how did they get her out?"

"I don't know. But they can't have gotten too far. We'll just have to get everyone to split up and look for her."

I quickly turn off the stove and Edward and I make our way out of the house, not bothering to bundle up even though that would be better in the freezing temperatures.

"Wait," Edward says, as we pass our mailbox.

"Really, you're checking the mail?"

He doesn't reply, just raises one finger to signal for me to wait. A few moments, he holds a crisp white letter between his fingers. On one side, it says Cullens.

He rips the letter open, his eyes frantically scanning the page.

"What is it? What does it say?"

"It says: if you want your precious half-blood daughter back, bring your coven to the Laudamuste forest, by nine o'clock tonight. Otherwise, we will kill her."

We make a hard dash for the main house, through the snowdrifts and ice, until we finally make it inside, leaving the cold air behind us. Carlisle and Esmé, oblivious to the disturbance, look at us with confusion in their eyes. Edward sits me in a chair in the living room, and then signals for me to stay and explain while he goes to get the others.

"What's going on, Bella," Esmé asks, plopping down into the seat next to me.

"It's Renesmée, she's missing."

Carlisle looks as if he might have turned white if he was alive. His mouth hangs open, slightly, in shock, and his eyes are wide with fear.

Edward returns then, with the others. Rosalie bolts over to me and crashes into me, smothering me with a hug.

"We'll find her, Bella," she whispers, her voice wavering with fear and sadness.

"We have to meet with them at nine tonight," Edward explains, "that's when they said they'd meet with us. In Laudamuste forest."

"Then we'll just have to wait until evening comes. Until then, Bella why don't you watch over Jacob for a while," Carlisle suggests.

I rise, slowly, my eyes downcast with worry. I bite my lip, an old habit from my life, and pick at my fingers again. Edward walks behind me, placing a reassuring hand on the small of my back.

"Don't worry, love. We'll find her."

I hope he's right. I don't want to live an eternity without my baby. I lean into his arm as we walk

If only I could make time go faster, just for today.


	9. Chapter 9 - Coven

Chapter 9 - Coven

 _When we lose someone we care about,_

 _All we want is to get that person back._

 _And we would sacrifice anything for them._

 _That includes our dignity._

Nine o'clock finally arrives, and I feel the nervousness of this day rush over me, filling my stomach with butterflies. Jasper does what he can to calm me, but there isn't much he can do when he is just as nervous as I am. Edward lets me almost crush his hand with my grip, gritting his teeth to bear the pain. I know he is just as nervous as I am, but he doesn't seem to show it. That's just the way he's always been. Stoic.

The jeep shudders as it races over the bumpy forest floor, Emmett almost flooring the pedals as he drives. The others are packed into another jeep behind us, while Esmé waits at home, watching Jake.

We reach the clearing after a few minutes, and Emmett slams on the breaks until we skid to a halt. He immediately opens the door, and jumps out, his shoulders heaving as he pants, almost growling under his breath. Jasper follows more cautiously, taking the time to check his surroundings before he jumps out. Edward and I soon follow, eager to see our daughter again.

Cautiously, we cross the clearing, careful not to seem threatening or menacing. A tall man suddenly appears from the darkness, his bright red eyes gleaming in the darkness.

"Velkom," he says, with a thick accent. "Ve vere hoping zat you vould kom kvickly, und here you are!"

Edward squeezes my hand as he stares at the speaker. His skin is so fragile it's beginning to flake, and his fangs are as long as the old stories told. His eyes are circled by the purplish bruises that we only get when we're hungry, and his pallor is so pale he might as well be transparent. He grins, creepily, and gestures for us to follow him. Emmett moves first to follow, followed by Jasper, and then Edward and I. The others follow us shortly, all of them bent low and ready.

"My name iz Cristian. I am told zat your coven is kvite large. Vhich is vhy ve are eager to add you to ze rebellion."

"What," stammers Jasper. "You kidnapped Renesmée to force us to join you?"

"Of course," Cristian smiles. "Und it vorked, obwiously."

Edward turns to look at me, now, fear in his eyes. "What happens if we say no?"

"Vell," Cristian sighs, "ve vould just have to kill her, now vouldn't ve?"

I swallow, hard, and push Edward back behind me. "We'll join you, just don't hurt her. We'll do anything."

"Perfect," he smirks, "she vill be returned to you as soon as possible. I don't imagine zat shall be long, now."

"We want her back, now," Emmett growls.

Cristian turns to him, smirking, "of course, but zere are rules here. You vill have to vait."

I take Edwards hand, squeezing it, gently. He turns his head to mine, and whispers in my ear. "Carlisle understands. This was never our fault, and it's for the best."

I nod, trembling, but not afraid.

"In ze meantime," Cristian smiles, "ve velkom you to ze Romanian Cowen."

Suddenly, several hundred vampires emerge from the tree line, their deep red eyes glinting in the darkness. Near the back, a group of bright golden eyes glimmer, and one pair off to the side shines bright yellow.

As I scan the crowd, I stop for just a moment as I find a pair of eyes, not quite red, but not yellow either. Sort of... Orange.

Edward spots them too, and begins to growl, low in his throat.

"Vat is it," Cristian wonders.

"Those orange eyes," Edward fumes.

"Ah, yes," Cristian boasts, "zose beautiful orbs belong to Waria, she chooses to only drink ze blood ov our mortal enemies, ze verevolves."

I feel my blood boiling as he says this, remembering all the poor souls who dies because of this vampire. And Jacob, who is still recovering from her attack. My hands clench up into tight fists, and my lips begin to curl back over my teeth, as a low rumbling ascends within my throat, turning into a fearsome growl. Edward places a careful hand on my shoulder, reminding me to keep my cool and not to burst out, even though he is just barely seconds away from leaping out and attacking as well.

"Vat is ze problem," Cristian asks, his cold red eyes pulling me out of my trance.

"Sorry," I mutter, collecting myself again.

Cristian sort of shrugs and turns to face the company behind him. "Ve velkom the newest addition to ze Romanian Coven, ze Cullens!"

A resounding chorus of cheers ring out from the glowing eyes before us.

"Don't forget about the wolves," I tell Cristian. "We have a strong bond with the werewolves in Forks, and the werewolf clan here."

Cristian shrugs. "Glad additions to our alliance." He raises his arms in triumph, and begins again. "With ze Cullens, ve also gain ze alliance of ze verevolves in Forks, as vell as any additions zey may have gained here!"

Another cheer goes out, this one less excited, but still glad to have the extra help.

The others close in around us, their faces slowly coming into view. The group of golden eyes near the back now clearly belong to the Denali. They stand together, glad to see us alive and alright, but all the same terrified of the situation we've been drawn into. Then, the single yellow pair reveal them self as faith, the vampire we met earlier. She smiles, showing her beautiful white teeth. As she makes her way over to us, she flips her hair over her shoulder and sighs.

"I'm glad to see you folks again," she says, taking her place in front of us. "I took your suggestion- you're right," she adds, "it is possible to survive off of animal blood! And I don't feel like a monster anymore. I'm glad you showed me that."

"We're happy to help anyone willing to listen," Carlisle says, warmly. "You're welcome to join us."

"Thanks for the offer, pops," she smirks, "but I think if rather make my own family."

He nods, and she waves as she makes her way back to her friends.

"I hope she can find her own way," Jasper whispers. "It was hard for me, and it'll be just as hard for her."

We wait until morning, when Renesmée is finally brought out for us. She looks tired, and a little battered from the road, but overall, she's fine. Edward and I carefully take her by the arms and carry her back to the jeep, where she sleeps, her head resting on my shoulder. Jasper drives now, as smoothly as possible, so as not to wake her. It probably took us ten minutes to get here yesterday, but today, it's a thirty minute drive. I cradle Renesmée against my body, remembering a time when she was much smaller, a time when she didn't get into trouble, when Jacob was there to watch over her. I suppose that's gone now. And to think it has already been ten years since she was born. I gently kiss her forehead, and wipe a tear from her sleeping eyes.

We may not have made this decision, but we must make the most of it.

Edward wraps his arm around our shoulders, and we look off into the newly breaking dawn.

 _What challenges await us in the months to come?_


	10. Chapter 10 - Awake

Chapter 10 - Awake

 _When all is said and done, family is all we have._

 _We treasure our loved ones, no matter what they've done_

 _The beauty of family is forgiveness, and safety._

 _And that family doesn't always include relatives._

 _Jacob_

The world sort of hazes around me, bubbling and misting in and out of existence. Black, gray, and purple light fill the room, or rather, the void. I know I'm alive, I can tell that much. I must be sick, or something. I can hear the distant beeping of a heart monitor, and I can feel the IV in my arm. Somehow, my eyes refuse to open.

 _Click_

The door must open now, and I hear the familiar shuffling of feet across the floor. They must belong to Renesmée, or Alice, as they almost glide along without touching the floor. If it's Alice, it's very strange that she's coming to see me.

"Jacob," she whispers. _Yep, it's Alice._ "Jacob, we need you to wake up. I know it's hard but we need you now."

I'm puzzled. Alice has never liked me. Why does she want me to wake up so badly?

"It's Renesmée," she sighs, her voice trembling, like she's about to cry. "She really needs you now. Bella and Edward can only keep her away for so long."

My eyes suddenly open, and I'm aware of my surroundings. I'm in Carlisle's personal medical room, on a stretcher similar to the one Bella was on when she was pregnant with Renesmée. An intimidating IV stands next to me, filled with dark red blood, and garbage can of extra bags sits in the corner. Alice lurks in the doorway, get dark hair mask in her eyes.

"Renesmée," I force out, realizing how hoarse and scratchy my voice is now.

Her head immediately whips up, and she looks at me, a smile across her face and tears in her eyes.

"You're okay," she whimpers.

"Where is Renesmée," I croak.

"I'll get her for you." She immediately flits out of sight, the sound of her small feet making tiny creaks as she ascends the stairs. Moments later, she's back, this time with Renesmée.

She looks terrible. There's a large bruise above her left eye, and a gash on her cheek, a tiny cut on her nose, her lip is split in a few places, and there are gashes and bruises all up her arms and legs that i can't see. Carlisle must have stitched her up, but she still has to heal. Thin white bandages cover her injuries, but nothing can hide her pain from me.

"Jake," she whispers, a wide grin appearing on her face.

"Nessie," I sputter, looking at all of her cuts.

She bounds across the room and descends upon me like a wild animal, her arms outstretched to hug me.

"I've missed you so much," she sobs into my ear.

I squeeze her tight in my arms, and brush her cheek with my lips. "Who did this to you?"

"It doesn't matter," she lies, "I'm alright now."

I know she won't tell me what happened, so I'll have to ask Bella and Edward. So instead of pushing her for it, I run my hands through her beautiful chocolate brown hair, and gently kiss her lips. She jumps for a second, a little uncomfortable because of her split lip, but all she wants is me right now. She responds with a full force kiss, which probably will send her through much pain. I pull away to prevent that.

"What's wrong," she asks, dejectedly.

"Don't go hurting yourself for me."

She smiles, gently, and then kisses me again, less forcefully.

"I missed you," she whispers.

"I love you," I tell her, pulling her onto my lap, and wrapping my arms around her waist. "I don't want to lose you."

"I thought I'd lost you," she says.

I grin. "You could never get rid of me."

Over the next few days I get back on my feet, and start eating real food again. It's hard at first, my throat swollen shut from dehydration and lack of blood, but eventually with water, and time, it returns to normal. Walking is the challenge. After spending so much time lying down, it's hard to shift back to a vertical position. Eventually, I feel as though I'm back to normal.

In the meantime, the others tell me about what has happened since I've been out. The resistance against the Volturi, kidnapping Renesmée, and Faith, the newest vegetarian vampire.

"Have you talked to Dahlia about any of this," I ask offhandedly. I expect a yes for an answer.

She catches me off guard. "No, we didn't want to overwhelm her," Bella explains.

I drop my spoon into the cereal bowl I had been eating, splashing milk all over the counter. "You have to tell her, she just switched sides!"

"She didn't choose a side in the first place, and she shouldn't have to fight for something she doesn't believe in."

"You just volunteered her when you volunteered us!"

She looks away. "We don't want anyone to get hurt."

"Well, you're too late for that, so you can forget it," I snap. She looks at me, tears brimming in her eyes. She knows it was her fault that Renesmée got hurt, and she's not going to pretend it wasn't.

"Jake," says a male voice, just entering the room. Edward cautiously, but casually walks over to me, his eyes telling me he's fuming on the inside. "Leave Bella alone. She's had a hard week."

I frown, and pick up my spoon again. The cereal is soggy now, and actually really gross. Bella glances at me one more time before leaving, wrapping her arms around herself, trying to squeeze away the pain. Edward takes her place opposite me.

"Get out of my head," I grumble, picking up the bowl of cold milk and soggy wheat product.

"I'm not in your head," Edward hisses. "Don't get so full of yourself. I'm in hers."

"You can't get in her head."

"She lets me in." He smiles, slightly, and glances down at the floor.

"Okay, well that's just creepy," I say, putting my dirty dishes in the sink and turning on the water. We have a dishwasher, but Nessie and I don't make enough dirty dishes to use it very often. Edward casts me a wary glance, probably because of something Bella was thinking. I yawn, and stretch. "I'm going out to hunt," I say. "Staying in is way too boring."

"Do you think you could go down to the reserve instead? The kids down there are kinda lost without a leader of the pack."

"But I'm not the leader of the pack."

"No, but you know what you're doing, these kids don't."

I turn to face him. "I guess... But you have to promise me you won't use the kids for the rebellion."

"I can't make that promise. And if you don't help them, and we do have to use them, they'll be dead, all of them."

I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place. "I guess I'll do it," I say, begrudgingly. "But you have to make Bella promise to protect them."

"She'll do it."

I make my way to the reserve in Bella's bright red corvette. Edward had it fitted with every safety feature imaginable, and it's bright red so no one would think to hit it, even at night. He's overprotective of her, but I think that's his way of showing he cares for her. Next to me is Renesmée, completely silent, thinking. The split in her lip is mostly healed, and she has the pale yellow shadow of those bruises left, nothing else. She wears makeup to cover it, but I can still see it. Though, I am looking for it. She holds my hand, a gentle reminder that she's there. I keep my eyes on the road, watching the bare trees pass us, the glare of freshly fallen snow blinding me at times.

When we finally come to a stop in the reserve center, there are several young teens waiting for us. All of them have short hair, and dark, deep set eyes, with that telltale tattoo on their right shoulder. All of them, save one. Dahlia. Her hair cascades down her back in luscious waves, straightened by a perm, and lengthened with thick extensions. Her full lips are colored dark purple, and she wears plenty of makeup on her eyes. She looks at me with haughty eyes, and glances at Renesmée with concern.

"Hey," I begin, with a little wave.

The pack nods at me, silent.

"My name is Jacob Black. I'm a werewolf." I remove my jacket and show them my tattoo, and carefully nod at them. "I've been like this for about twelve years now, and I know what I'm doing as a wolf. I'm here to teach you guys everything you need to know about being a werewolf."

One guy's hand shoots up immediately. "When I last checked, werewolves turn into their wolf forms only on the full moon, but we can change whenever. So are the myths wrong?"

"No," I explain. "Technically, what we are is not werewolves. We're actually shapeshifters, who choose to take the form of wolves."

The kids nod, carefully considering what I just said.

"Why do we have to cut our hair short," asks a girl with medium-length hair, clearly unable to part with any more.

"There's a lot to explain," I tell them, "let's go inside and talk."

"You'll teach us about being monsters," asks the boy.

"No, I'll teach you how to be _yourself_ , and _not_ be a _monster_."


	11. Chapter 11 - Monsters

Chapter 11 - Monsters

 _Never be ashamed of who you are_

 _Your flaws are what makes you beautiful,_

 _And what makes you a monster in your eyes_

 _Is that makes you special to others._

The pack watches me, their dark eyes tracing my movements, and following my thoughts. I stand in front of them, in wolf form. Carefully, they take a few steps back, ensuring that they are far enough away from everyone else. Then, they strip, sparing the clothes they care most about.

"Three, two, one," I say in my thoughts, which they can hear. "Phase!"

All at once, they jump up into the air, snarling and growling, as their forms grow and shift, their legs lengthening and their backs arching, their noses and mouths stretching away from their face to form a snout, all while a thick coat of fur appears all over their skin. Once they have fully transformed, they growl and yip, inspecting themselves, I am about to praise them when I look across the pack, and notice once single person who is not in wolf form.

Dahlia.

She stands, unchanged, her arms folded across her chest, her mouth twisted into a frown, and her eyes watching everything in horror.

"Keep practicing, alright," I tell the pack, and they nod sheepishly.

I quickly phase out behind a tree and throw some pants on to talk to her. She flips her still long hair over her shoulder, and marches towards the house, fuming. Her tall heels make huge dents in the snow, the thin layer of ice which covers it snapping with every step.

"Dahlia, _wait_ ," I tell her.

She doesn't respond, she just keeps marching towards the house, her hair bouncing in the slight breeze generated by her gait. She prances up the stairs and across the long wooden porch to the front door, and slams it behind her. I open it gently, and find her, sitting bolt upright on the couch, her arms folded and her face twisted into a sour expression.

"Dahlia," I sigh, walking over to sit with her.

"What? You want me to turn into a beast, to cherish the fact that all of us are _monsters_? I won't do that, Jacob Black, _I refuse_."

"This isn't something you can choose, it's how you were born. It runs in your veins. And it's nothing to be ashamed of."

"Why would we _hide_ it if it's _nothing_ to be _ashamed_ of?"

"The rest of the world doesn't understand," I say. "It's not our fault. They would be after us with guns and scalpels if we told."

"So what you're saying is that we are _monsters_ , and the world wouldn't understand."

"No, we aren't _monsters_ ," I say again, more firmly this time.

She leaps to her feet, hot blood rising in her cheeks. "Then why won't anybody accept us?"

"Calm down," I tell her, "you might phase-"

Suddenly, she phases, her body arching backwards, hair bursting from her skin, and her body shifting into that of a wolf, her fur a deep black shade with piercing green eyes, instead of brown or gold. She snarls, her teeth snapping and foaming, filled with contempt and rage.

She raises her paw, sharp claws protruding from her thick black fur, and she swipes down at me, narrowly missing me when I jump out of the way. I phase now, feeling my wolf form take hold of my entire being, and becoming the animal inside. I snarl and attack, my sharp claws digging deep into her skin, making her howl in pain. She bites my neck, her canines ripping into my flesh, the force of her crushing jaws choking me for a moment. I shake her off, and attack again, pushing her back against the wall and glaring at her.

"Heel," I think, as loudly as I can.

She looks away, only for a moment, before she stares back, her thoughts screaming, "get off me!"

"Cool it, Dahlia," I order, bearing my teeth and snarling.

She whimpers, and finally looks away, before phasing out, clutching the gashes in her side. Her skin is soaked with dark red blood, which stinks of iron and salt. I look away, and phase back. I stand there, my back to her, not a scrap of clothing to be found.

"Are we cool," I ask.

"We'll never be cool," she snaps, finally rising and making her way upstairs to change.

I sigh, and put my hands on my hips. This is going to be harder than I thought.

Dahlia joins us after a few days, finally doing as she's told and practicing her skills. She's faster, stronger, and a quicker learner than the others. She may be destined to be a chief, though she may not know it. She barely looks at me, and when she does, she makes a disgruntled sound. She keeps her focus on more important things, like her cellphone and the latest bit of gossip from school.

One day, as we're training in the woods, I sense a presence quite familiar to me, and smell the most disgusting scent a wolf's nose can smell.

Vampire.

I whip around, expecting Bella or Edward to be there, but I'm taken aback.

Instead of beautiful Bella or stone cold Edward, another vampire takes their place. A vampire I had heard about, but never met. She's tall, her thick, dark hair cascading over her shoulder sin orderly locks, and her bright yellow eyes peering back at me, the slightest smile on her full lips.

"So this is the werewolf boy," she starts.

"Faith, I take it."

"Pleased to finally meet you," she grins, her perfectly white teeth shining in the midday sun. "I was hoping to get a sneak peek of the newest addition to the alliance."

"Who is that," one of the boys calls.

"This is faith, she's one of the vampires we've grown to trust," I explain.

Dahlia only sees her for a second before we all feel her world being ripped away, the ground falling out from under her feet. Her heartbeat quickens, and blood rushes to her cheeks.

She imprints on Faith.

Several of the members of the pack look over at me, confused. I glance over at Dahlia, dumbfounded. I thought female wolves couldn't imprint.

"What's up," Faith asks, weirded out from the silence.

"Wolf... Thing," I stutter, staring at dahlia as she looks back at Faith, her eyes sparkling with pure love.

"Should I go," she asks, trying to be polite.

"No," dahlia bursts. "No, I want to talk to you."

"Not a good idea," I warn her. "You don't know what you're doing."

"I can handle myself," she snarls.

I let her go, and she marches across the reserve with faith in tow, who glances back concernedly.

"What's going on," asks a young wolf.

"She imprinted," I explain. "She'll be obsessed with Faith. She'll do anything for her, be anything for her. I just hope she doesn't get bitten by her own destiny."

"Have you imprinted," asks a young girl.

"Yeah," I smile. "And I nearly lost my life because of it."

"Her parents weren't happy?"

"Her parents are vampires."

"But it worked out?"

"Yeah," I smile.

"So how is this any different," she asks.

I pause. "I suppose it's not."


	12. Chapter 12 - Visitors

Chapter 12 - Visitors

 _What will you sacrifice to protect the ones you love?_

 _And how will you live with that shame?_

 _Bella_

Carlisle and Emse flit about the house like two birds, concern pulling their usually flawless faces down into somber and confused frowns. Edward stays next to me, watching them move, reading their thoughts. I want to know what he hears, but every time I ask, he waves me away, his fingers silencing me. Meanwhile, I sit and stew about Jacob and Renesmée. They left early this morning again, to train the pack again. It's a good thing, too, considering what's coming. Hopefully, under his training, they'll be able to hold their own against the Volturi. I don't want to send them to their deaths, but I don't exactly have a choice.

Suddenly, Edward grabs my hand, and pulls me towards the door. I follow him silently, watching his face with concern. As soon as we step outside into the chilly air, he turns to face me.

"Jacob and Renesmée are fine. But there's been a development. The Romanians are coming here."

"What? When?"

"Tomorrow, just after noon. They're bringing the original eight, including Anastasia."

"They're bringing lady medusa herself here?"

"I need you to think up a reason for Jake and Renesmée to go away that morning, and not come back until they're gone."

"Okay," I panic, "I can do that."

"You can," he reassures me, planting a gentle kiss on my forehead.

"Hey," a familiar voice calls from the trail.

"Jake," I breathe, rushing over to hug him. "Where's Nessie?"

"I took he to your house, she should be in bed now."

"Good," I sigh. "What's up then?"

"It's Dahlia. She's... Made an interesting decision in her love life."

"What do you mean?"

"You can't be serious," Edward laughs, having already read Jacob's thoughts.

"She's a lesbian," Jacob explains, "and she imprinted on Faith."

"On a vampire? I didn't think that was possible."

"Neither did I. Also, she's a girl... Girls can't imprint," he sputters.

"Apparently they can," Edward snorts.

"Okay, well, I have to be supportive, and so do you. This can be confusing for people."

"I don't think it's very confusing for us," Jake smirks. "Once you've found her, you know, you know?"

Edward nods, like he understands, and I smile at him.

"I suppose."

Jake nods, still grinning, and takes off towards his cabin. Edward takes my hand, and leads me towards ours.

"You know," he says, his lips pulled back into that captivating crooked smile again, "I think, if I were a wolf, I would have imprinted on you the moment you walked through the door in science class all those years ago."

I smile. "I might have imprinted on you then, too."

He leans down, and kisses me timidly on the lips, his soft lips brushing, then gently pressing against mine. I lean into the kiss, taking his hands, our fingers entwining.

"I love you, Bella Swan," he whispers.

"And I love you."

He kisses me again, harder this time, his hands rushing from mine to take hold of me. One hand twists into my hair, the other one clutches onto the small of my back. In shock, I latch onto his shoulders, pulling him down to me. His tongue plunges into my mouth, brushing and dancing with mine, his teeth biting down on my lower lip.

"Edward," I murmur as he moves away, his lips and teeth moving to my neck.

He picks me up from the front, my legs wrapping around him, his hands squeezing my thighs.

"Bella," he sighs, walking as fast as he can go without dropping me. As soon as we are in the room, he tosses me onto the bed, then pounces on top, mercilessly kissing me, his hands running all over my body. "I love you."

"I know," I reply, smiling. "And I would never leave you. You're mine. Forever."

When morning comes, so does a sense of dread which chills me to the core. Today, the Romanians make their appearance. And with them, they bring their powerhouse, the one who brings death on anyone she makes eye contact with. I shiver, something I haven't done in many years, imagining what she might do to any of us at any moment.

"Hey, Bella," Jacob calls, chipper this morning.

"Hey, Jake," I call in reply, and quickly move over to him. "Can I ask you a favour?"

"Sure," he replies, raising one eyebrow. "What is it?"

"I need you to take Nessie out tonight, and don't come back until I text you."

"Okay," he laughs nervously, "but why?"

"Just trust me, and don't come back before I text you. If you have to, rent a hotel room, I'll reimburse you later."

"What is going on, Bella," he asks.

"I can't tell you that. Just... Don't come back, ok?"

"What do I tell Renesmée if she wants to come home?"

"Tell her you've been planning this date for months."

"You want me to guilt trip your daughter into staying out all night? You make me look like the bad guy."

"Trust me, you're not."

"Alright," he sighs. "But when we get back, you'd better explain everything."

"I will."

"Good," he smiles, turning to leave. "The pack and I are going hunting today, just so you know where we are."

"Take Nessie with you, and make sure she doesn't get lost."

"That was the plan."

I smile, and wave goodbye. Today will certainly be stressful.

By the time the Romanians have arrived, I've completely rearranged my bookshelf, color coded my closet, and cleaned every speck of dirt in the cabin. The stress and nerves from their arrival was freaking me out, so I started stress cleaning. I would have been stress cooking or biting my fingernails, but those habits are gone now. Edward watches me, helpless and concerned, as I descend into madness, until finally, he rises, and I realize that they are here.

I drop my broom on the floor, whip off my apron, and fluff my hair one last time before bolting out of the house, making a beeline for Esmé and Carlisle's house. Edward waits there, nervously tapping his foot, while the others sit in the living room, clutching their own hands or each other. Alice stands in the corner, her eyelashes fluttering, her eyes almost rolling back in her head. Jasper stands a few feet away, watching her carefully.

Carlisle straightens up when Edward does, and looked towards the front door, where eight figures wait silently. Esmé rushes over to open the door, revealing two familiar faces smiling at us. Stefan and Vladimir wear sickly grins, leading their coven in behind us.

"Good afternoon, Cullens," Stefan says. "Glad to see you all here. Where is your child and her werewolf friend?"

"They went out. I don't think they'll be back for a while," I answer, my voice shaking like a leaf.

"Ah, what I shame. She was a charming girl," Vladimir laments. "Ah, well. We'll surely see them in a bit."

"Well, we'd like to welcome you to our new home, friends," Esmé smiles. "I'd like to introduce my family, this is Edward," she gestures to Edward and I, "and his wife, Bella. Then we have Rosalie and Emmet, Alice and Jasper, and the two absentees, Jacob and Renesmée. And I'm sure you already know Carlisle." She looks back at him, fear in her eyes. "And my name is Esmé."

"What are the special abilities among this coven," a woman with long, curly black hair asks, her red eyes matching the red lipstick she wears.

"I have the ability to read minds," Edward says, "Alice can see the future, Bella is a shield, and our daughter, Renesmée, can make her thoughts known to anyone by touch. The rest of us have other abilities, but not so powerful to be 'special.'"

"Ah," smiles the woman with black hair. "Well, allow me to introduce my coven." She steps out from behind the group, and gestures accordingly to each person.

"This is Stefan, and Vladimir, as I'm sure you know," she grins, as the two men step forward. "And I'm sure you've met Cristian." The one we met earlier steps forward, a toothy grin on his face. "Then we have Mihail, who is able to harden and soften his skin at will. He can be as hard as a diamond, or a s soft as talc, at any time." A man with soft brown hair steps out, his eyes ringed with dark eyeliner and his lips tinted dark purple, almost like a bruise. "Then we have the girls. This Anastasia Maria," she smiles, gesturing to a woman wearing a blindfold over her eyes. "She has the ability to kill anyone she makes eye contact with, which is why she's wearing the blindfold, to minimize casualties. Then we have Elena, who can become like a ghost. You could walk right through her when she uses her ability." A woman with grey hair steps out, her mount downturned into a permanent frown. "Then we have Mariana, who can turn herself into water at any given moment." The last woman steps out, her dress made of soft blue satin fabric. "And my name is Andreea."

"It's good to meet you all by name," Alice says with a smile. "I'm sure we'll all be able to get along swimmingly."

"I certainly hope so," says Mariana. "But there is one order of business first."

"And what is that," asks Carlisle.

"In order to ensure loyalty, we must ensure that all of you are willing to give up your ideals for or cause."

"Vone of you must drink human blood for us. Zen, and only zen vill ve trust you," Cristian smirks.

"We can't do that," Carlisle objects.

"Zen ve have no choice but to kill you all."


	13. Chapter 13 - Hunt

Chapter 13 - Hunt

 _Jacob_

Renesmée laughs as we drive over the uneven terrain. She watches me, brushing her hair back over her shoulder, and grinning from ear to ear.

"Hunting today, huh," she lays with a giggle.

"Yeah, we thought it'd be good to learn how to catch our own food."

"You sure Dahlia is gonna be ok with this?"

"She'll have to be. She doesn't really have a choice."

She snickers. "You still have so much to learn about women."

"What do you mean?"

"When a woman wants something, she finds a way to get it. Doesn't matter what anyone else says."

I laugh. "I doubt she can keep the entire pack from going hunting."

"No," Renesmée says, "but she may not come with you."

I scoff. "She has to come."

"She won't," Renesmée laughs, looking out the window now, at the vast fields which stretch out beneath us.

"What if," I wonder, "I offer another incentive?"

"What kind of incentive?"

"Well, maybe we should catch the guy who's been killing all of my wolves?"

"You want to go after Varia," she practically squeaks.

I stop, and look at her for a second. "You okay?"

"You can't go after her, she'll kill you all!"

"If she kills us all she has no blood source anymore. And I'm sick of her picking off my wolves one by one."

"But you'll get slaughtered," she protests.

"The pack has come a long way, and I'm confident they can take care of themselves."

"You got hurt the last time she came into contact with you!"

"Yeah, but I was alone. And besides, I got better!"

"They're just kids! You've been doing this for years, you can't possibly be comparing yourself to them. They're so new, and young, you'll get them all slaughtered!"

"Tsk," I mumble as I look away, avoiding her gaze completely. She folds her arms, and looks out the window, probably thinking some obscene swears.

We pull up to the inner circle, and make our first way around. I park in front of Dahlia's house, and knock on her door first.

"What," she complains, leaning against her doorframe in her pajamas.

"We're hunting today," I tell her. "Did you forget?"

"Nah," she yawns. "Just don't wanna go."

I roll my eyes, and walk into her house.

"You're saying you don't want to learn to control your powers. I get it, that's fine. Just don't come crying to me when you accidentally phase in front of Faith, and slash her face open."

"That doesn't happen," she laughs, nervously.

"No, it happens. It happened to the alpha at my old pack. His girlfriend has a long, ugly scar across her face. Somehow, he managed not to kill her."

She looks at me with wide eyes, her expression terrified.

"Alright, I'll go with you," she almost pleads. "Just teach me not to hurt her."

"That's better," I grin, finally looking at Renesmée. She still looks angry, her arms folded, but she can't deny that I beat her.

Dahlia rushes past me, in little more than her underwear now, quickly throwing that off, too, before phasing, practically on her front porch.

 _You coming,_ she thinks, her glassy green eyes looking back at me.

"Yeah," I mumble, looking back at Renesmée. She nods, hesitantly, and I duck out to strip and phase. As soon as I've phased, I loop back around to pick her up.

It's been a while since the last time she rode me, and the sensation of her fingers in my fur makes me shiver, especially since she's currently angry at me.

 _Let's go,_ I think, and dash off to the clearing where I told everyone to wait for us. When I reach it, the others are already phased and ready, so we take off immediately.

I let the scents of the woods fill my nose, and they explode into color before my eyes, each color leading to different things. It's beautiful, watching the different colors merge and blend, to create new scents. But one other scent is more powerful than the rest. The smell of bloodsuckers, and the smell of our brothers-in-arms. Lost to the monster who killed them.

 _We're going after the werewolf killer_ , I announce, and the pack is almost falling over themselves in excitement.

 _Finally, payback,_ the smallest, quietest wolf thinks, their mouth practically dripping with feverish malice.

I grin back at them, and then begin the low battle cry.

 _After her!_

 _Bella_

 _"Vone of you must drink human blood for us. Zen, and only zen vill ve trust you," Cristian smirks._

 _"We can't do that," Carlisle objects._

 _"Zen ve have no choice but to kill you all."_

"I'll do it," I sputter. "I won't let the rest of you break your habit. I've only been doing this for ten years. I can stop. I know I can."

"If you break your habit now, you might never come back," Edward protests. "Let one of us go."

"No," I tell him. "I can do it. You did it, I can do it, too."

Edward squeezes my hand in his own. He looks at me with those wide, dark orbs of his. I know he's looking at me, trying to remember my eyes. When I was a newborn, I too wore the bright red irises, just like the Romanians do. But that was different. I was living off of my own blood, and I didn't have to kill someone else.

"Excellent," Stephan grins, and the Romanian coven surrounds me. "You will come with us, back to Romania. There, we will question you, and perform the ceremony." He struts over to the door again, and raises his arms as he continues.

"We would have preferred the leader of the coven, but we've been making compromises all week. What is one more?"

They suddenly, all put their hands on me, and Cristian disappears, then, one by one, they flash out of existence, their bodies becoming completely transparent in a moment. My mouth hangs open as I watch each of them disappear, one after another. Edward suddenly mouths something to me.

" _Cristian. Teleportation."_

And then he's gone, and I'm careening through the darkness of space, lost to the world.

 _Jacob_

The pack's feet make large prints on the snowy forest floor, that would probably make anyone believe that bears were in the area. But Avonlee hasn't had bears in years. They all ended up leaving, migrating to another part of the mountain range, when hunters went after them and nearly killed every bear in the area. After that, it's only ever been me. Until just recently, there was only me to dot the forest floor with my paws.

Now, I run surrounded by my pack. The wolves are tall, and majestic, purpose seething through their veins.

 _I'm picking up vampire stench,_ one of the pack calls. It's a young man, named Logan. _This way._

The pack follow him, giddy with excitement.

 _Ready to kill your first vampire,_ I ask.

The wolves nod, ravenously.

Dahlia marches by my side, her eyes darker than the others.

 _Are you okay,_ I ask her.

 _No. Varia killed my friends. She has to pay for what she did._

I smile at her, trying to comfort her. _Trust me, she will,_ I tell her, with a sinister expression.

She grins back at me for that, and I feel her excitement.

 _Let's go kill a vampire._

 **Author's note:**

 **Sorry, short chapter again this week, but it made sense to end there to me, so this is what it is.**

 **This chapter may be slightly confusing, because I had to write for the wolves, who don't say what they're thinking out loud. I did what Stephanie Meyer did in her books, and wrote their thoughts in italics, but it should be noted that Renesmée cannot hear the thoughts of the wolves. She's not tapped into the information stream like the rest of them. This should clear up any confusion. It also should be noted that we jump back to the end of the previous chapter for a flashback. That flashback is also in italics. Just so you're not confused.**

 **Sincerely,**

 **Kitty Greene**


	14. Chapter 14 - Pride

Chapter 14 - Pride

 _Bella_

There's a flash of white, and suddenly I'm careening through space. Bright lights flash around me, and I spin out of control. I haven't felt this helpless in ten years. I reach out, grasping at anything that might be able to stabilize me, and stop the spinning. My hand grasps around something that feels like metal, but my body keeps spinning, and the metal bends and snaps within my hands. It's that moment that I realize that I can't stop. I hear a high-pitched scream, which hurts my ears.

 _It's mine._

When I open my eyes, I'm sliding through a thick blanket of fresh white snow, and spitting gravel and rocks out of my mouth. My shirt has been torn to shreds, and a frigid chunk of snow is sliding down my unfeeling stomach.

"Velkom to Romania," Cristian smiles, offering me a hand.

 _Jacob_

 _This way,_ Logan snarls, and the pack tears off after him. I can't help but be filled with wonder and pride as the pack bonds, learning to trust each other and use their abilities for good.

We bound around another bend and into a clearing.

A single figure stands silent among the snowflakes. Her dark eyes stare back at us, her teeth, or rather, her fangs handing out if her mouth, creasing her thick, plump lips. Her hair is long, dark red, gathered into a single messy braid. If she didn't have the vampirism, she might even be ugly. But her features are perfect, just like any other vampire. Thick scars like her throat, puncture wounds from the teeth of the wolves she's killed. She grins when she sees us, hungering for her next meal.

"I see you've found me," she hisses.

"We did," Renesmée translates, jumping off from my back.

"I assume you've come for revenge? To soothe all the souls I've killed?"

"You need to be annihilated, monster."

"Ah, but you forget, we're on the same side now," she chuckles.

"No, we're not. You've been killing my wolves and it has to come to an end."

"Your wolves," she scoffs, "I thought you were just a kid from forks. This isn't your pack, Jacob Black."

I hear a low growl, and suddenly a black figure jumps out of line and launches herself at Varia's throat. Varia screams, and claws at the wolf, trying to get her away, to stop the pain. Then the rest of us pounce, snarling and growling, long strands of spit swinging from our mouths. We snap and snarl, teeth and claws tearing and crushing. I'm certain she didn't survive.

She must be dead by now, I tell them and they step back.

What's left is a bleeding, broken mess of a person, barely breathing. Somehow, she still manages to smirk.

"It's ok," Dahlia croaks. "I'll be alright."

 _Bella_

The Romanian coven's house; or rather; castle, towers over the property in tall parapets, covered in light gray stones. They bring me to a dimly lit room, with a long couch rather than a bed, a long bookshelf covered in books, a large fireplace, with a bearskin rug on the floor.

"The guest rooms aren't used much, so I hope this will do," Andreea says, handing me a change of clothes. "Get dressed, we'll call you when we need you."

She slams the door behind me, and the room echoes almost violently. Then, it's eerily silent, the only sound is of the wind, whistling against the windows.

 _Jacob_

Almost at exactly the same time, all of us phase out, horror causing us to shudder and shake.

"Dahlia, we are so sorry," is all that I can say, dumbfounded.

"I don't understand," Logan says. "We had her, not you!"

"She's fast," someone says. "Faster than a normal vampire."

"Then how did you phase out and get underneath us?"

"I... I don't know," Dahlia squeaks out as we lift her onto our shoulders.

I step out of the line, letting the others support Dahlia as I phase back, so they can fasten her to my back.

"We have to take her to Carlisle," Renesmée says.

"Why him," the smallest girl asks.

"Carlisle is the only doctor who knows how to treat a werewolf. He's the only one who knows how to save her."

They look over at me, hoping for some kind of confirmation.

 _She's right_ , I tell them.

They nod back at me, and phase, Logan taking Renesmée onto his back.

We have to beat the clock.

We make it to Carlisle's home at the same time as an unwitting Faith arrives. When she spots Dahlia on my back, her mouth drops open, and a strange sound, like one I've never heard before, comes out from her. Like a cat whining, or a tree breaking and falling down to the ground with a crash. Within an instant, she's scooped dahlia off of my back and carrying her inside, panting in panic.

We phase out an follow her, my back slick with blood, the other's hands and feet speckled with blood, either their own or Dahlia's.

" _Help her_ , Carlisle," Faith begs as she bursts into the kitchen we don't really use.

Carlisle's eyes widen, and his mouth drops open, just like Faith's did.

"Didn't Bella tell you not to come home until we _contacted_ you," Edward screams, storming in after me. He stops short when he sees the blood on my back.

"I would have thought you'd see this," I argue. "You're always watching any other day."

"No, I was... Busy with someone else."

"Where is Bella, anyway?"

"She's not here," Esmé says, helping Carlisle to carry Dahlia safely down the stairs. "We don't know when she'll be back."

"How did this happen," Edward gapes, noticing the blood on the hands and mouths of the others.

"We were hunting, and somehow... She got underneath us."

"That doesn't make sense," Edward demands. "What _happened?!"_

"We... _We don't know!_ " I dig my fingernails into Edward's shoulder, almost as if I'm going to phase and kill him. A low growl rises in my throat, and I bare my teeth.

Edward shakes my hand off and steps back, and I realize I'm drooling.

"Get out of this house."

"But Dahlia," Logan protests.

"Out."

 _Bella_

"We're ready for you," a female voice calls from behind the door.

I take a deep breath, though it's useless, and rise, flipping my hair back over my shoulder. The halls of the castle are long and wide, about twelve of Charlie's living rooms could fit in this hallway. And there's next to nothing lining the walls. Candles hang about every six feet, their flames burning unnaturally bright. Shadows move across the walls, shifting from light source to light source. Behind me, Mariana watches my every step, her bright red eyes scanning my entire body from top to toe, checking for any sign of defiance. I let her do her work, staying completely silent, and beginning to push my shield away from my so Edward can see what's happening. It used to take all my effort to push my shield away, but now it's simple. I only need the strength I contain in my pinky finger to move it away. I'll never know if he's reading my mind, but it's better to be open so that he can see when he does.

Finally, we reach the dining hall of sorts, which contains a long dining table rounded by chairs, at which each member of the coven sits. Stephan and Vladimir are the first to see me, and cough gently when I enter. The other quickly look up from their discussions, and the room grows eerily silent.

"Welcome, Bella," Vladimir says.

"Thank you," I reply, clasping my hands together in front of me.

"We wanted to... Give you a chance to tell us all the secrets of your coven, and we might spare you if you do."

"You mean you intend to kill me if I don't?"

Vladimir doesn't answer, he just simply nods.

"Alright," I sigh. "You want all my coven's secrets? We have none. You know everything there is to know about our coven."

"Not quite. We know you didn't intend to join us at first," Stephan accuses.

"That decision was left up to Carlisle. He had friends within the Volturi. But when they came after us ten years ago, those friendships ended."

"Strange," Stephan muses, "that you did not immediately align with us when we fought with you on that day ten years ago."

"You aligned with us because you hated the Volturi. Not because you cared for the fate of our coven. In fact-"

"We do now," Cristian interrupts. "All we ask for is your trust."

"I'm sorry. That is something I may not be able to grant you."

Stephan sneers, and his eyes are filled with disgust. "Very well, Bella Cullen. Your information was quite helpful. Take her away," he says to Mariana, and I feel two shackles of ice close around my wrists.

I pull my shield back, and follow her, my head held high.

They cannot break me.


	15. Chapter 15 - Guilt

Chapter 15 - Guilt

 _Jacob_

I watch over the house for the next few days, while the other members of the pack stay home and train without me. I feel like this is my fault, so it's my duty to put in the time to fix it. I know Renesmée agrees with me. I should have listened to her from the start. Now it's my fault that dahlia's been hurt. How will I ever explain myself to Bella when she returns?

"Hey," Renesmée calls from behind me.

"Hey," I reply, casting a quick look over my right shoulder.

"There's some dinner waiting for you in the house."

"Not hungry," I lie.

"You haven't eaten for three days, Jacob. You need to eat something for God's sake!"

I roll my shoulders back and look up. "It's okay," I tell her. "You don't need to worry about me."

"Yes, I do," she protests, moving so that she stands in front of me, blocking my view of the house. "I care about you."

I shake my head. "This is my fault. I need to fix my mistake."

"Unless you went to medical school in the last ten years, you can't fix this. You have to wait until Carlisle fixes it."

She takes my hands, and interlocks her fingers between mine. She's slightly cold against my skin, and it's not because it's cold outside. I balance out her cold, though, my natural heat warming her fingers. She looks up at me, her large doe eyes trapping my gaze. I can't look away. She's perfect, beautiful and lovely, and everything I've ever wanted.

Her eyelashes flutter gently, and I sort of lean toward her, our heads only inches apart, as she turns her chin to look up at me. Her lips part slightly, and her warm breath gently caresses my face. It's... Intoxicating looking at her. Our faces inch closer, until our lips are touching, not quite kissing.

"Sorry," I murmur, my body refusing to move, "I'm making this hard."

"No, you're not," she says, and our lips crash into each other, her hands moving to the back of my neck, my hands trailing down to her back, pulling her closer to me. She sort of groans as I kiss her, and I trail my hands over her body, my hands slipping under her parka to touch her skin. It's warm, and soft, almost melting under my touch. She presses her body into me, her fingertips twisting into my hair, and it's the last straw for me. I scoop her up into my arms, and she squeals with delight, reaching for more of me.

I take off, running back down to the cabin, our kiss never breaking as I run. Somehow I keep her steady enough that she doesn't protest to the running, and I burst through the front door of my cabin with fiery abandon. She giggles as I put her down on the floor, and whips her shirt off, before fumbling with mine and giving up, ripping it to shreds instead. I dig my fingertips into her skin, and plant sloppy kisses along her collarbone, as she gasps. I tease her, biting and sucking on her skin so hard it bruises, as she guides us to the bedroom. Once we're inside, her hands fumble down to the buttons of my jeans, and she quickly undoes them, kicking them down my legs. My hands find their way down to her waist, sliding the soft material of her leggings down as far as I can reach before she kicks them off, too. I push her over, and she crashes onto the bed, the blankets and pillows flying up and crashing back down on top of her, as she giggles.

"I love you, Renesmée," I whisper, my voice sounding gruff and low.

She doesn't reply, but pulls my chin to her face, her lips crashing into mine again, her tongue dancing in my mouth.

My hands work around her body, gently pressing into her soft skin, making her moan even louder.

"Jacob," she cries out, and that's the end of my patience.

We grunt together, long into the night, our sighs the chorus of the night.

When the sun rises again, I wake to find Renesmée's beautiful brown hair in my face, her cheek resting on my bicep, her hands gently placed on my chest. Our legs are entwined, and we wear no clothes, the underwear we had been wearing strewn about the floor.

I smile, remembering last night. Her face, red from embarrassment, begging me for more. The taste of her skin and sweat, the sounds of her moans. I had waited seven years for this. Ever since she had grown, I had wanted only to be with her, physically, emotionally, and legally. But I never got the chance to.

I almost hope I made her pregnant last night, though I know it's almost impossible. She's half vampire, and probably sterile. Even so, it would be so much easier if it turned out that she was pregnant. Then Bella would be forced to let us marry. Or at least, Edward would force her.

I wipe my eyes, and look back down at her. Her mouth hangs open, just slightly, her long, dark eyelashes fluttering slightly. I kiss her gently on the forehead, and slip a pillow under her head where my arm had been, and get up.

The morning sun tinges the sky sort of pink, the clouds in the bluish expanse shine bright magenta. The thin beams of light dapple through the trees, casting shadows and patches of sunlight onto the snowy forest floor. I soak up the morning for a moment.

"Where is she," a female voice cries, "I saw her yesterday!"

 _Bella?_

I dash out of the house wearing a thin t-shirt and the same jeans from last night, and bound down the forest road towards the female voice.

"I don't care that she's in quarantine, I need to see her," Faith screams at a distressed Rosalie.

"Sorry, Faith; but she's in no condition to have any visitors, girlfriend or no girlfriend," Rosalie says, her voice firm, but her expression anything but.

Faith's hands ball up into fists, her long, sharp fingernails piercing her palms. "I'll be back for her," she spits, and turns to leave.

"Jacob," Rosalie calls, as I turn to leave, "Edward has news from Bella. I was just coming to get you. Have you seen Rosalie?"

"Yeah, she stayed with me last night."

"That would explain why she wasn't at Ed and Bella's cabin. Could you grab her, and come meet us in the living room in five?"

"Yeah," I stutter, "sure."

 _Bella_

"Get up," Andreea orders from behind the heavy wooden door. "It's time to go hunting."

She pushes the heavy door open with ease, and flits across the room to throw me some more appropriate clothes. Among the fresh undergarments, she throws me a thin black shirt, black spandex leggings, and a black leather jacket.

"I'm a vegetarian," I remind her. "I don't hunt humans."

"If you want to survive, you're going to have to. We don't have too much wildlife up here."

"That's fine," I tell her, pulling on the new clothes, not observing the laws of decency. "I can go to the supermarket and buy some meat." I almost gag saying the word, but I keep my composure and look back at her.

Her face is twisted into an expression which outlines her disgust in a way words never could.

"Whatever," she says, after shaking the thought out of her mind. "I guess Mihail can go with you."

"I can take myself," I tell her. "After all, I'm here as a friend."

"Not since the discussion in the dining room you're not."

I stop, and look at her.

"As of this afternoon, you are no longer our friend, Isabella Cullen."

Her eyes flash a deep shade of red, sending a shiver down my spine. With a flick of her hair, she leaves the room, locking the door firmly behind her.

 _Jacob_

In the eerily silent living room, all eyes are fixed on Edward. He sits, his elbows resting on his knees, his chin resting on his folded hands. We all wait, silently hoping that his words tell us of good news, when we know they can't.

"Bella opened her mind for me a few hours ago," Edward explains, "but nothing really notable happened for quite a while. That is, it was going as expected. The Romanians questioned her, but... Bella may have made a mistake. She should have lied, but..."

"What happens now," Carlisle asks, his eyes downcast.

"They're going to perform the ceremony... But they won't let her come back to us."

"What," Emmett almost screams.

"Calm down, love," Rosalie says, taking his hand.

"What do we do," Jasper asks, looking at Alice.

And for that moment, every heart in that room beats for her answer. Our eyes all rest squarely on her, and she looks back at us, shaking in distress.

"I don't know," she finally says, her words bursting out from her body. "I don't know how to fix this." Tears begin to drip from her eyes, and her breaths become ragged and sharp.

We look back at Edward one last time.

He looks back at us, the same fear in his eyes.

His wife is lost.


	16. Chapter 16 - Escape

Chapter 16 - Escape

 _Bella_

From my window, I can see the frozen meadow of the castle. The cold, unfeeling wind blows through it, sending little explosions of snow and frost up into the sky, flying up over the desolate winter landscape. In my hand I clutch the heaviest thing that I could find in this room, a candlestick. It curves around my fingers, fitting neatly into my hand. I take a deep breath, and lift the object to throw it.

And then, I let it go.

It careens through the air, crashing into the thick glass of the window. I watch as spiderwebs radiate from the place where he candlestick hit the glass, and grin when it falls, hitting the floor with a chorus of tings. The cold winter wind hits me now, and I breathe in the scent of freedom. Three weeks here was well enough for me. Not to mention that they'd been trying to feed me human blood, and refusing to let me drink animal blood.

I crouch on the windowsill now, the sound of the Romanian vampires screaming in anger not even reaching my ears. The fall is long, and would probably terrify anyone else. But I'm not afraid, not anymore. With one final breath, my feet leave the windowsill, and I'm falling down, down, down to the ground.

I'm quick on my feet, and make a hard dash for the treeline, hoping to get out of their view. If they can't find me, they can't catch me.

"Bella, Bella," Stephan calls after me, with a grin. "You can't escape."

 _"Just watch me,_ " I whisper, darting behind the tree line just in time.

He growls as he follows me into the brush, scanning the forest floor for traces of me. But all he finds is a dead end, while I looks down from the bough of a particularly tall tree. He grumbles and spits, and all but hisses as he takes off into the brush, hoping to catch me on the other side.

I have to think fast now, and swing through the branches of the tall trees just like Edward used to do with me. Who knew such a strange talent could come in handy.

"Bella," Andreea calls, less angry but still searching for me. "Bella just come down. Let's talk this out."

I nearly laugh out loud. As if they'd want to talk.

I burst through the last line of trees, and gasp as my eyes fall onto a city road. Cars zip by, and people chat merrily in their vehicles. All I need is a car, and I can slip under the radar.

I follow down the road for about a mile, and come to a rest stop. There, several cars are liked up, while their drivers used the public restrooms. I just have to hope that one of them left their keys in their car.

I slide down the trunk of my tree, and land on the pavement with a gentle click. Nobody gives me a second glance as I walk towards a particularly unkempt car, half of the front hood is bashed in, and one of the headlights doesn't work.

Luckily, they forgot to lock their vehicle, and the keys are in the ignition. Thank god.

After a few tries, the car starts up, and I join the line of cars traveling down the highway. I can't help but feel bad for the guy I stole this from, by I need it more than he does.

The road signs all tell me that Bucharest is in only a few... kms, what's that? I decide that that's probably the best way to go, maybe they have an airport there.

I grip the steering wheel just a bit tighter as I travel down this busy highway towards my escape.

 _oOo_

A few hours later, I find myself in the Bucharest airport, clutching a one way ticket to Italy. I'd tried to get a ticket back to Canada, but there weren't any flights that connected leaving tonight, and I have to be out of Romania, now. The airplane will be packed with people, and I'm already starving, so I have to make an effort not to kill anyone. I take a deep breath as the gate opens, and people begin to board plane. People smile politely as they pass the flight attendants, who are always smiling. As I pass them, I simply wave and walk past them to my seat.

The plane is small and constricting, and I can hardly breathe. Good. If I don't breathe, I can't smell the blood. Maybe I should just hold my breath this entire flight.

I'm about to close my eyes and pretend to be asleep when I notice a familiar figure boarding the same flight.

 _Andreea._

My heart leaps into my throat and I tense up my fingers, avoiding eye contact. I don't think she sees me, but she's seated only a few rows back. A flight attendant passes me, asking if I have any luggage to store in the overhead compartment. I shake my head, and she smiles, walking on to the next row. I shield my face with my hair, and pretend to be asleep, hoping against hope that she doesn't notice me.

The flight is pretty short, only a couple hours, and soon we're touching down in Rome. I just have to make my way off the plane and into a cab that can take me to Volterra. I'm careful to shade my face with my hair, and avoid eye contact with anyone except the flight attendants. I smile, politely, as I phase them, and then squeeze my way through the crowd as they head to the baggage claim, opting for the taxis stationed outside. I hop into the closest one, and pull my black credit card out of my wallet.

"Volterra, please," I whisper, hoping he'd understand.

"It's going to cost you," he replies in Italian.

"I don't care, just get me out of here," I say in Italian, with a terrible American accent.

He nods, and zips into traffic, leaving the airport and gunning it for the correct highway.

I glance out the windows, looking for Andreea. I just barely see her in the distance, in the back of another cab, a wide smile on her face.

She knows I'm here.

"Don't let that can catch up with you," I order.

"You got it, chief."

We approach Volterra in only an hour or two, and I watch as Andreea's grin turns to a frustrated grimace. I almost laugh in triumph.

"Where do you want me to drop you," the cabbie asks.

"Beneath the clock tower."

He pulls into the square, and I pay him using my card. It's expensive, 146 Euros, but it's worth it, getting away from the Romanians.

I wave as he drives off, and run through the halls, calling out for the familiar names who live here.

"Aro," I call, spinning around in circles, looking for them.

"Isabella Cullen," the familiar velvety voice of Aro replies.

I sigh in relief. "I need your help. The Romanians are after me."

"Don't worry, child. You are safe here," he smiles, extending his hand to me.

I take it, and he guides me down to the living space.

"It is late," he says, "you should get some rest."

"I haven't..."

"Ah," he smiles. "I can see that you are thirsty. Do not worry. We'll send you some puma blood. In the meantime, you should rest."

He leads me to a room with a bed, and I curl up on it, smiling back at him.

"Thank you," I whisper.

"Of course," he replies, and closes the door behind him.

 _oOo_

There's a knock at the door a few minutes later, and behind it waits a servant, bearing a glass of thick, crimson blood.

"Your puma blood," the servant announces, as I take the glass. It smells sweet, and delicious, better than usual.

"Thank you," I answer, taking the straw from the tray.

He closes the door behind himself, and I take the glass to the bed, sipping the first bit.

 _It's delicious._

I take another sip, and relish the taste. I've needed this. Impatient with the straw, I put my lips to the side of the glass, and drain it, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand. Now full, I turn to the mirror to fix my appearance.

The glass shatters on the floor, as I look at my reflection.

A pair of glowing red eyes stare back at me.


	17. Chapter 17 - Blood

Chapter 17 - Blood

 _Jacob_

Its been three weeks since she was taken. The whole area, the district, even the state police are looking for her, but we know they won't find her. There's no way they could. She's beyond our reach.

Edward spends most of his time alone, hoping to hear something from her. Its futile, he knows, but he keeps trying anyway. Alice watches, too. Whenever she gets a vision everyone in the room goes completely silent, waiting on her every word. But every time, she shakes her head in dismay.

This morning, I awake to find Renesmee's small body curled around mine, her eyelids fluttering as she sleeps, soundly. My heart fills with a certain warmth every time she looks at me, and when she's near me, I feel as though I could fly. She nuzzles closer to me, her cool skin making contact with mine, raising goosebumps on my arms. I gently brush her cheek with my lips, breathing in her sweet scent.

"Good morning," she coos as I pull away.

"It is a good morning," I whisper, lowering myself to look into her eyes.

"And why is that?'

"Because you're here, rather than with him."

"He didn't need me last night." She wipes her eyes, remembering the long and stressful night before. In a stress-induced panic Edward had latched onto his daughter, the most valuable thing to him as of late, and refused to let go. She simply sat there, and let him wrap his arms around her, keeping her within his protection.

"Hungry," I ask, moving to sit up.

Her hand closes around the hem of my shirt, and I'm pulled back down to look at her. She bites her lip, and lets her other hand wind itself into the fabric of my shirt, lifting it up to expose my stomach.

"Starving," she whispers, before pulling me close to kiss her.

Her lips dance against mine, begging me to kiss her back, but now is not the time. She looks at me, disappointed when I pull away, choosing instead to stretch and get dressed.

"You want blood or waffles for breakfast," I ask as she pouts on my bed.

She sighs, rolling off of the bed and throwing some clothes on from the batch she brought over a few weeks ago. "Whatever," she says, "it doesn't matter to me."

I smile at her, and retreat to the kitchen, popping six waffles in the toaster for breakfast. Then I grab a couple glasses and begin to fill them with orange juice. She watches me from the doorway, her mouth downturned into an angry frown.

"Aw, come on," I sigh as she turns away. "It's not like we can have sex every morning!"

"I know," she pouts, "but I really wanted to today."

"Sorry, hon," I smile, "but I'm not up to it this morning."

She shrugs and sits down at the small table, resting her elbows on the table, and her chin on the heels of her hands. Suddenly, theres a knock at the door, and Alice and Edward appear in the kitchen, their eyes wild with excitement.

"She escaped," Edward pants, his usually calm exterior completely thrown out the window.

"Mom," Renesmee asks.

"Yes," Alice says, "She's going to catch a flight home tonight. You'll see her tonight!"

I grin, completely forgetting about the waffles that have just popped out of the toaster. "I can't believe she's gotten out!"

"Now all we have to do is wait for her to get back," Edward smiles. Renesmee takes his hand, grinning wide and peering up at him in awe.

"I can't wait to see her again," she says, "I've missed her so much."

"Have you told the others," I ask.

"Not yet," Edward confesses. "But we will."

For this one moment, all we feel is joy, the gladness that our lost friend and mother will return.

 _A few hours later_

"She couldn't come straight home," Alice laments, "but there is a flight to Italy. She figures she'll stay with the Volturi for protection and come home."

"But she hasn't eaten in a few weeks," Edward clarifies, gripping the couch cushion he's already ripped to shreds.

"She can control herself," Rosalie says, "I'm sure of it."

"Maybe," Jasper interjects. "But she might not be strong enough to fight off her urges. She's still relatively new to this lifestyle."

"She's never even tasted human blood," Rosalie argues. "She won't give in, I know it."

Carlisle and Esme look away, watching the snow fall outside. I sit on the couch next to Nessie, who sits next to her father. She trembles as she watches him, only wanting to comfort him and care for him.

"She'll be alright," I tell myself, as if I'm telling all of them. "There's nothing to worry about.'

"I'm not so sure," Alice breathes. "I'm so afraid."

"We all are," Esme finally says. "All we can do is hope for is the best."

We nod, the room growing silent again. In our hearts, we hope she is alright.

 _Bella_

The glass shatters in my hand, and I hear a piercing scream. My hands claw at my eyes, trying to make the red glow disappear. Tears burst forth, rushing down my face, and my heart squeezes and tightens, causing my chest to ache. The scream grows louder and louder, and closer and closer to me.

"Mrs. Cullen," the servant calls from the doorway.

I whip around to face him, baring my teeth, almost spitting. He cringes back, fear apparent on his face.

 _I should kill him._

He stumbles back, his heart rate quickening, almost panting with fear. I smirk, and beckon to him to come closer. He shakes his head, and backs up even further, but he cannot outrun me. A moment later he lays limp in my arms, his blood dripping from my lips. I relish in the taste, savouring the sweetness.

"Isabella," Caius calls from the end of the hall.

I growl and look up at him, my mouth twisted into a sickly frown.

His eyes meet mine only for a second before his expression turns from concern to deranged joy. A long laugh fills the room, echoing off of the hard stone walls towards me, and my own laugh joins it, two insane hysterics meeting each other in the darkness.


	18. ANNOUNCEMENT: HIATUS

Yup! I've been working on this story for four months now, and hating every moment of it. Suprisingly, you guys haven't noticed yet... but I actually have come to dread writing these chapters every week. I've been surrounding myself in a book series that I loved, until it became the same thing I disliked. I'll be taking a hiatus for now, we'lol see if I return to this story, but I really don't enjoy writing this right now. It's just not interesting to me anymore, and I couldn't care less about it right now.

Don't get me wrong, this isn't just because I've grown to hate writing this. It's also because writing takes up a significant portion of my time, which I should be using working on my original story. Working on this is making my life infinitely harder than it has to be.

If you want to still read my work, I am writing some Star Wars Fics right now, which I do enjoy writing. You can find them on my author's page.

Sorry again.

Sincerely,

Kitty Greene


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